I Got You
by courtneylovejason
Summary: AU "When you need a place to run to, for better or worse, I got you" Nathan and Haley go through life raising their young son while balancing work and family.
1. Prologue

**AN: This story was previously called "A Life to Hope for" After some time (sorry about that) life finally settled down and I really felt the need to get to know these characters once again and do some revising. So if you're thinking this sounds familiar, then you're right, but i feel it's much better and I have some great help this time! I have so much faith in this story, and I'm excited to get your honest feedback! So enjoy :) **

**PS- I own NOTHING~**

I Got You

**Prologue **

_Haley's POV_

_I sat on my bed to write, like I always did at this hour, every eight in the evening. Every night I'd write in my journal unless something intervened. Usually that never happened. Anyway, before my next thought could even come, I heard the shower stop and the noise of pitter-pattering water that had filled the bedroom was immediately gone. And that meant one thing. He was done. _

_He stepped over the threshold of the bedroom, and my eyes were easily drawn to his body, taking in his appearance. His hair dripped wet, his towel was lazily wrapped around his waist, and finally his deep blue eyes stared into mine._

_End of POV_

"What are you writing now?" the half-naked man questioned as he walked passed Haley and towards the closet to dry off.

"Something that you shouldn't worry about," Haley said, jotting down one more thing in her notebook and afterwards closed it.

"Whatever Hales" he said with a chuckle. Suddenly, after a split-second, he was dead serious. "Is he down yet?" he asked, obviously concerned.

Haley rolled her eyes. "No, at least not yet. He's watching his mobile twirl and twirl. I'm sure he's fighting sleep though, as usual."

"Want me to get him?" he asked.

Haley sighed. "Doesn't matter, I let him take a _really_ long nap today."

"Well even at this age, he likes to sleep as much as his daddy," he commented.

Haley walked closer while he was still drying himself off and patted him softly on the shoulders. "Alright _daddy_, you can try. But I'm telling you, he's _not_ going to sleep anytime soon."

"I'll at least try. Just let me put on some clothes."

She nodded, and afterwards looking amazed as he got dressed. She loved this man for as long as she could remember, and sometimes still questioned if she were living in a dream. Time did pass by so fast.

_Haley's POV_

_I can remember back when I found out I was pregnant. Nathan and I were both scared out of our minds and really didn't know what to do. We knew we were keeping the baby, but… everything else seemed to be such a blur. _

_Although, once the initial shock wore off, I was excited to have my little girl; I mean it had to be a girl, right? Well, Nathan just had to insist that we find out the sex. The sonogram spoke for itself. I, of course said that she had her hands between her legs, but I knew that wasn't the case. I was having a boy. _

_I'll admit was upset at first, but then I realized that I could get a carbon copy of him and soon enough, my disappointment turned into excitement and I couldn't wait to meet my little guy. Correction—**our** little guy. _

_Nathan was helpful throughout the entire pregnancy, picking out the furniture and colors for the nursery, and making sure that everything was ready for the little guy. Though, we did argue a lot about the nursery, things were smoothly. I mean, some of his plans were too much to take in. I could not just let him decide by himself and had to speak my mind. _

_In the end, the room was covered with a wallpaper of dark pale green and blue with brown bears. He'd finally given in once I whined about it for a few days. He had no choice but to agree with me. He has such a soft heart._

_And as the days and months passed by, our baby was born at last. Oh, I could even remember that day! It hurt like hell and I almost wished I would have gotten the epidural. But one look at that needle and my mind was instantly changed._

_Getting passed that, naming him was also something that we'd gone over thousands of times. I told Nathan that since I was the one who gave birth to him, that I should be able to name him, and that he could name our other children. **Other Children.** Yeah, that led to another conversation that had me turning beet red. "Let's get through having this one and we'll talk about more later" That statement stopped my tears, and brought a soft smile to my face at the thought of more children. _

_Eventually after some vetoing and compromising, we named our little boy. He is now Jason Matthew Scott. He was a full six pounds, thirteen ounces and eighteen and a half inches long at birth; and not surprisingly enough the spitting image of Nathan- his father and my husband._


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

_Haley's POV_

_ Nathan. Nathan. Nathan. Nathan. It still brings a smile to my face to hear, see, or even think of his name. As I said, I can remember everything about my son's birth and the pregnancy. It was scary and fun at the same time. I got sick a lot and his weight hadn't picked up till the very end of my third trimester. Nathan and I were very scared and I remembered him constantly reassuring me when I blamed myself for our baby suffering. I tell you I've never felt so loved by anyone in my entire life._

_Oh, speaking of love, did I mention he's in love with the kid?_

_Jay-Jay is what he likes to call him, or sometimes just Jay; but that's his buddy, a friend of his. He talks to him about anything and everything, so I'm sure my baby's scarred for life. But as I said, he's a carbon copy of him. Hair, eyes, lips, even his birthmark is in the same area. It ticked me off at first, I mean, seriously, that was too much, but now I can't get enough of my two guys. They bring me too much happiness, and he did end up with my nose, so that's something._

_ Nathan's family was very excited about the new addition to their family; mine however wasn't as accepting of the idea. They do love him and sometimes make time to travel up and visit our family, but they would rather me be in Medical School full time instead of part time like I am now. However problematic my relationship with my parents may be, Nathan just seems to blow my worries away with the love and support I receive from him; he knows he's all the family I need._

_End of POV_

Haley snapped out of her wandering thoughts when she heard Nathan make his way into their bedroom holding Jay, who was nursing a bottle as if he hadn't eaten in days. She saw his big deep blue eyes find her darker ones. And when the nipple slips out of his used-to-be-toothless mouth, he calls out _"A-E" _

"Can we call me mommy?" she calmly requested as she stood up only to crouched down to the height of her son who was at still at Nathan's arms.

"A-E. A-E" the kid continued.

"You're gonna get your momma mad at you buddy," Nathan said sitting down on the bed, Haley following his action.

"Oh, I'm not mad at him, but at you for teaching him that. I don't want him calling me or trying to call me Haley. I'm momma!" she said, only amusing her little man even more.

He didn't want to stop. "A-E. A-E"

Haley shot a joking glare to her husband. "I'm going to hurt you Nathan Scott…you better watch your back."

This caused Nathan to roll his eyes. "Now, now, Hales, you sound like Brooke. I should probably call Luke and tell him to watch his back when he goes to sleep tonight. He could never wake up again being married to that girl," he tried to joke.

Although, it wasn't a bit funny to his wife, "Please do _not_ wake them up," she requested.

"Brooke?" he asked knowing more than likely his brother and sister-in-law was wide awake.

"No, not Brooke. Drew. Brooke and Lucas said he's just getting over the ear infection he had, and they can finally sleep again. So trust me, you do _not_ want to wake them."

Brooke and Lucas were in the same predicament as Nathan and Haley, having a baby after college unexpectedly, but never once thinking of not having it. So they had a thirteen month old boy named Brandon Andrew Scott. Drew, as he was lovingly called, inherited his fathers' eyes and mothers' dark wavy hair. Needless to say, he was a very gorgeous boy and able to get whatever he wanted just like his mom.

"Thanks for the warning," Nathan spoke.

Little Jay then yawned and closed his eyes, Haley watching his every move.

"Well somebody's sleepy," she pointed out. Nathan then turned his gaze from her and onto the little boy in his arms who was sucking on his ring and middle finger, not to mention softly snoring.

"Why'd you teach him that?" he questioned.

She started, "I technically didn't teach him that. I just didn't encourage him to stop when he started. Besides it comforts him. What if we're away from him and he's scared? His fingers comfort him, so I think it's safe to deal with it when he gets older, than to rip that away from him now."

Nathan rolled his eyes once again. "Okay Hales," he began sarcastically. "Man, I didn't think you'd get all technical on me. Come on, let's go put him down." he said leaning down to kiss her lips. Afterwards, he rose from the bed with Haley and went to Jay's room across the hall.

They walked into the room and Haley got his crib ready for him. Their little guy was a _very_ picky sleeper. _When_ he slept in his crib, the blanket over him had to have a satin side and a soft side, his big bear had to be close to his feet, his fish sounds music had to be turned on, and his blanky with the bear on the top had to be near his face. Once it was set up, Haley kissed his soft cheek, and rubbed a smooth hand over his dark locks before Nathan kissed the baby and laid him down, making sure the blanket was snug around him. Jay immediately turned on his side and snuggled into his blanky, his breathing evening out once again.

They walked back into their room and were finally able to catch up with the day's events.

"So how was class tonight?" Nathan asked, coming into the bathroom to see Haley start her nightly regiment.

In between her rinsing she spoke, "Hard actually, I mean… not really. It was just another lecture, then a lab."

"Then why'd you tell me it was hard? Seriously Hales, our kid's gonna be a liar," he laughed on the inside knowing that his wife was such a hands on learner and preferred to get her hands dirty and experiment.

"Oh, maybe because I was dead tired from these two men keeping me up all night long?" she said referring to Nathan and his mini me, sounding all sarcastic.

"I have no idea what you're talking about Hales" he acted innocently.

Haley gave him a look. The look had the 'sarcastic and irritated emotion' all over again. "_You_ kept me up last night Nathan. Why'd you wait till nearly 3am to want… _that?_"

"You know I'm _always _hard for you Hales, just like I am now," he said, as he smiled at her handsomely.

She could only stare. That look captivated her, and she couldn't do anything about it.

With that said, he then lifted her up as she cocked her head to the side giving him a sly smile. He brought her over to the bed and dropped her on it, planning to keep her up once again this week.

Haley could do nothing but just be brought. Nathan was too strong for her. Then again, maybe it was a good thing for her. He was her husband after all.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Haley had just about had it with Nathan today. In the past month, there had been three break-ins in their apartment complex. No one knew who, when, why, or what was even taken, that was if anything was taken. Although, each break-in was different, the first one had most of their electronics stolen, the second had nothing missing, and the third place was just trashed. As a result, all the tenants were told to be extra careful and to make sure they always locked their doors, even while inside. To say they were on high alert was an understatement.She too was angry with him because no matter what day or time it was, she could barely reach him, reminding her of when they'd first met and at one point she could never reach him.

Nathan being two years older than Haley went into the Military when he was twenty, and was overseas for two years before he was sent back home to the states. As much as he loved being in new places, he could never forget about the girl that'd caught his eye during his first visit to Dallas, Texas. Haley.

Since the first day that he saw her, he was all hooked up in her beauty, her personality and immediately gave her his number. He even made her promise to call him. Back then the way most college students communicated was via instant messaging, so he of course gave her his information for that as well. After getting online and talking with him for hours that night, Haley easily decided their friendship could be harmless. Nevertheless, it was hard to keep their friendship together seeing as she'd just started college in Virginia and he was down in Georgia attending Jump School.

Neither knew where any of this would lead, but Haley always received an email from him, telling her the events of his day and everything he was thinking of. It never failed that in every email, he'd PS it with the same words, "When can I finally get a call from you Haley?" Haley always laughed at that statement because when they'd met, it was only for a brief moment and she'd barely spoken a word to him. She was not only shocked by his looks and the things he said to her, but she couldn't believe that he was saying all those things to her and had never blushed so hard in her life. Her response of "Haley" "yea" and "okay" were never enough to placate Nathan for long, and the first day she called him, she got his voicemail. She left him a simple message telling him how much she needed to hear his voice, and just wanted him to tell her that everything was okay proving that she did not have a good day.

Haley also didn't know much what to expect from him. She was just about to finish up her junior year in college, and he was already out of school and had a career in the military. She didn't think that she'd ever talk to him, until he unexpectedly called her back and told her how much he thought about her constantly. As sweet as he was Haley wasn't sure how they could really keep in touch since she didn't have a cell phone at the time. She had been using Brooke's phone but refused to monopolize her friends' property any longer. She immediately thought that 'they' couldn't work if something as simple as having a phone was preventing them from talking, but once again Nathan stepped in and changed that.

"_You gotta pen?" he spoke quickly, given that he was supposed to be out the door with his team to spend the day in the field training. _

_With a confused look on her face, she retrieved a pen from her desk. "Yea, why?" _

"_Write this number down, but you gotta hurry because I gotta go," he insisted _

_He proceeded to give her a long line of numbers that had her extremely confused. _

"_What numbers are these Nathan?" she asked completely dumbfounded. _

"_This is the number for the calling card that I have. It still has about twenty-four hundred minutes on it, so anytime you can't use Brooke's phone, then use this and call me okay?"_

_Her eyes widened in absolute surprise. "Are you sure, Nate?" _

"_Yea, I'm sure. Anyway, I gotta go, oh and Haley, I love hearing you call me 'Nate'. Call me later, okay?" _

_She smiled when he said that and because of that day, she grew even fonder of Nathan Scott. She couldn't imagine the butterflies ever ending. _

Finding each other had to be the work of someone much higher and powerful than them. After she finished college and he was back in the states, she had moved to Texas, someplace she loved to visit, and longed to live in. After learning that information, he chose to be stationed down in Fort Hood, which was just one hundred and fifty miles from Haley's new home in San Antonio. With their new living arrangements, every weekend, Nathan would make the nearly three-hour drive to see Haley and it was then that their relationship really began.

He had visited her a few times while she was in school, but nothing compared to coming home every Friday night from class and seeing him asleep on her couch simply awaiting her arrival.

They seemed to have what Nicholas Sparks' The Notebook had, an improbable romance. Something that you only get out of a great novel or fairytale, but they both knew that it was real. To make it even more real, while Haley was still in her third year of Medical School, on their third anniversary, Nathan finally proposed to Haley. Of course she said yes. She loved him as much as he loved her.

Waiting, to them, seemed long, though. They'd known each other for a little over four years, but they started counting from the day that they were both living in the same state and able to see each other week; when they felt like a strong, stable couple. She said yes to his proposal and afterwards, on their honeymoon, they conceived the beautiful boy they had today. It seemed this improbable romance was indeed probable after all. It seemed like a happily ever after.

So, although everything turned out alright, the thought of not being able to reach her husband gave Haley an awful feeling; one that she _hated having_, especially after last night's events.

After tucking Jay in like they always did, Nathan and Haley went to bed themselves. However, they were awaken in the middle of the night when a crash was heard from their young child's' room, followed by his cries. Of course the worried parents were in his room in no time, Haley quickly tending to the wailing baby, while Nathan trying to run down the intruder, but having no such luck. No trace of anyone.

And since last night, Haley had been _nothing_ but on edge.

Only now were her nerves finally settled as she heard the front door unlock and watched as Nathan came in with a surprised look on his face. "What are you doing home?" he asked putting his empty lunch cooler that Haley had packed for him in the kitchen before properly kissing her hello.

"I skipped my last class today and came home early. I just…I don't know. I needed to see him." She then molded herself into his welcoming arms and rested her head on his chest, sighing contently. "I mean, aren't you worried Nathan, because I've been freaking out all day. And I have _every_ right to be overdramatic about this! Someone broke into _our son's_ room last night, not even our room Nathan, _Jay's_ room!" she said not realizing that she had started to ramble.

Nathan held onto Haley tight, knowing that she needed to let out everything that she was feeling about last night. He wasn't that worried about her sudden rambling trail, being married to her for nearly two years now, he was absolutely used to it. He could even tell that she was almost done, when he saw the one thing that meant she was _finally_ exhausted. _Tears_. He pulled her back and looked at her flushed face and began wiping the trail of tears that had made their way down her cheeks.

"Baby, I know you're scared about what happened last night, and honestly, so am I. As of right now there is nothing we can do but wait for the police to catch the creep. Jay can keep sleeping with us for as long as we're not comfortable with him sleeping in his own room," he said, yet noticed that she still was unsure. "Hey, I'm not going to let anything happen to you two okay? I promise," he added, trying to comfort her even more. "Now where's my big guy?"

Haley trailed into her own thoughts for quite a few minutes.

_When Jay first arrived, the two parents were thrilled that he was a mid-summer baby. Being born in June, Haley was able to stay home with him most of the day, while Nathan worked since classes wouldn't start until mid-August. Once school did start, she managed to only have one weekly three hour night class on Tuesdays and her other three courses were online, with labs two hours everyday. They were very blessed to have Lucas and Brooke living in the same complex as them, and whenever Haley had her labs, Brooke would keep Jay for her and Nathan. Lucas on the other hand, had majored in psychology and was now a child psychologist, making a decent amount of money affording them the luxury of Brooke staying home with Drew, while she still worked on her slow, but up and coming fashion line. _

_For their schedules, Haley, who loved the schedule set up for Jay, had morning classes from eight-forty until two pm, three times a week and one Tuesday night class from four to seven. Nathan's schedule was pretty simple compared to hers. On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays he had Jay in the morning and would drop him off to Brooke by nine-thirty, putting him at work from ten till six. When Haley had her night class on Tuesdays, Nathan would come home and shower before going to pick up Jay from Brooke and Lucas's and start dinner before Haley got home, hence his surprise in seeing her home before him._

She finally snapped back to reality when Nathan repeated his question.

"Haley, where is he?" he asked.

"Uh… what? Oh, he's asleep. I don't know what Brooke had him and Drew doing, but he was worn out by the time I got him tonight," she finally started explaining. "Although, since I skipped my class tonight, I was able to make your favorite for dinner tonight," she said, knowing that he would object. She loved doing small things that would mean the world to him and had made it a priority to do them as much as possible. Haley never wanted her husband to feel unappreciated for all his hard work and love he had for his family.

Nathan shook his head. "You know you don't have to make that, Hales. I mean you're allergic to lobster, and I surely don't want you to have a reaction from it, or have to cook something separate for yourself." For him, she always did things like that, just making him love her even more. But really for Nathan, just her being there for him, it was enough.

"Thank you Haley, you're such a great wife. I love you dearly, and plan to make this up to you," she answered in her best imitation of Nathan, completely mocking him.

Finally, letting go of his waist, she walked into their small but cozy kitchen and got out a plate and a bowl, making Nathan a plate of lobster and steamed vegetables. For herself, she poured a bowl of Captain Crunch.

This had Nathan laughing on the inside knowing that his wife had a love for the cereal. He'd thought it was weird when he first started dating her, but seeing her do all her little weird things nowadays, only made him love her more. Times like this made him feel sorry for every guy that ever screwed up a chance with Haley, and proved to him just how blessed he really was to have her.

A/N: SO? What did you think? I hope good thoughts. I just wanted to give you guys some input on Naley's past and let you know what's been going on. Now Chapter three does have a big event in it, but it won't be anything that drags along in the storyline. SO just in case I forget to put that there, keep it in mind. I hope you guys will review and tell others!


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Nathan walked into the dark apartment the next Tuesday evening with a wide awake Jay in his arms who was bouncing happily. Flicking on the light, he sat Jay down still dressed in his hat and coat and went to start unpacking the baby food and milk from his sons diaper bag. As he did this, Jay immediately took off the shoes his father had put on his feet before they left Brooke and Lucas' house and once he succeeded he toddled into the kitchen where Nathan was, and started opening the bottom cabinet.

Haley never wanted to be one of those parents that spoiled their children with the average toys and gifts like most did, but instead she found more interesting things that Jay could entertain himself with. Once she found out how much her little guy loved going into the bottom cabinet in the kitchen, she decided to trade out the pots and pans that once occupied the space, and place all of their Tupperware in the space below. It was something that wouldn't hurt him to play with, and since he'd go in there anyway, she figured they might as well save themselves a headache from the loud pans.

So that's where he sat, pulling every piece out, and banging them with his hands while his daddy worked high above him. "Dada?" Nathan heard from below. He could tell that it came out of his sons' mouth as a question.

As of two weeks ago, the young parents discovered that their son wasn't too fond of clothes anymore. One particular day, Jay had been roaming around the apartment, whining for no reason until they saw him constantly pulling at his shirt. Deciding that they should take his shirt off, figuring that it had to be possibly making him itch or something, they discovered him then pulling at his jeans. He however had no luck of getting them off, so Haley and Nathan took the pants off as well. Afterwards, Jay greeted them with all smiles as he took off crawling like nothing had been bothering him that day.

They had an exhibitionist on their hands

Nathan bent down, took the boy up and held him playfully under his arm while he carried him to the nursery. Standing him up on his changing table, he spoke softly to the child, "Okay, it's big boy time, Jay. You ready?" He then unsnapped his onesie and pulled it straight up over his head, while Jay's arms automatically lifted up. "Good job buddy, you take your shirt off _just _like big boys do."

To finish, they returned to the living room with Jason only in his freshly changed diaper. Nathan watched him go for his few scattered toys about the floor, then glanced over at the laundry basket that was quickly filling up. Since he decided that they could order in, he started to separate the clothes and start up a load, washing his sons' clothes first. Minutes after putting the first load in, Nathan heard the door slam louder than the water coming from the machine. He looked to see what it was and saw his wife, Haley rush into their bedroom without speaking a word.

He turned to see Jay, who was obviously startled by the slamming door, slowly crawling towards him, his bottom lip trembling in a full pout. He had to do something. "Come here buddy, you're ok." He took him into his room and sat the boy in the extremely lowered crib, knowing that his son couldn't climb out and get hurt. He placed a few random toys in there and left to go check on his wife.

As he entered their bedroom, Nathan could already feel the tension in the air. He knew that there had to be a string of emotions that his wife was feeling, and he just hoped that she would open up to him without a fight. Seeing the room's light was on, he was about to walk in when once again, Haley rushed pass him and walked out of their bedroom. Hearing pans clanking in the kitchen, Nathan followed the noise and prepared himself to break down the wall his wife had up without getting angry at her.

"Hales, what going on? What's got you so worked up?" he said, standing in the living room that was connected to the kitchen, as he watched her pull random things out of the cabinets.

"I'm making dinner Nathan, now what do you want to eat?" she said, obviously ignoring his question. She looked over at him and he had his hands up in defense.

He started to raise his voice at her. He hated that she didn't want to open up to him even a bit. It was obvious that she had a problem. "I want you to talk to me Hales! Just slow down for a minute, and tell me what happened that's got you so upset! And don't tell me it's nothing, because 'nothing' doesn't make you come home slamming doors, scaring our son, and not speaking a word to us like we're damn invisible! So I don't want to hear that it's nothing!" He was pissed and wasn't afraid to show his wife.

They weren't the type of couple that hid what they were feeling, but shared it no matter how ugly it was. When they first started their long distance relationship, Nathan's number one priority was to make sure Haley was comfortable with being completely honest with him and sharing her feelings. Times like these made him feel betrayed and often tested his patience.

Haley was about to speak when the glass that she'd been holding in her hand slipped and shattered into hundreds of pieces on the floor. She didn't expect Nathan to be that infuriated. She tried to move around it but just ended up getting a piece stuck in her let foot. "Shit!" she said on impulse.

Nathan came to the rescue as always, and lifted her against his body and into his arms. Soon after he had her sitting on the closed toilet seat as he looked through their sink drawer and got out the band aids and Neosporin, then cleaning her cut. He decided to go the subtle route. "How was class tonight?" he asked in a soft tone. He saw her lips moving, but she spoke so low that he had to ask her to repeat herself.

She put her right hand on her head, as if warding off a headache. She then shook her head. "I said I didn't do as well on my test as I needed to," she sounded worried and irritated. She really didn't want to repeat something that depressing.

He nodded his head, now understanding her attitude, and what caused her behavior.

"What did you get?" he asked, knowing that he was walking on egg shells with this question, because his wife had never gotten anything below an "A-"on any of her school work, until she had become a mom. But he knew the question had to be asked, even though her first "B-" had her in tears for _days_, never feeling more ashamed of herself.

She paused and took a deep breath. "I got a 'C', Nathan. That test stressed me out all of last week, and all I got was a 'C'. I can't afford t get 'C's' Nathan! If I want to keep my scholarships, then I need grades higher than a 'C'!" she exclaimed, uttering that dreaded letter again and again.

Nathan could tell that this had really upset her. They both knew that she could do way better than that. But _he'd_ also known that last week was when it was _only_ them juggling Jay, since Brooke and Luke had their hands full with Drew's ear infection. They had both been stressed and drained that whole week, but _he_ should have been stronger than that, helping her out more than ever.

"Haley, it's just one bad grade. We'll make sure you do a lot better for the next time. This isn't the end of your career in Medicine, I promise."

He hoped that what he said was enough. They'd never have this problem before, so he wasn't sure what exactly to do. He leaned in to kiss her, when she suddenly, to his surprise, _once again, _left the room in a hurry.

He followed her voice into the living room, and saw her sitting on the couch holding the menu to their favorite Chinese restaurant and obviously ordering their dinner. Just minutes later, she hung up and turned to him with a diminutive smile. "Thank you, babe."

Nathan smiled back at her and grabbed her hand. "What are we having for dinner?" he asked, trying to sound that nothing was worth worrying for.

Inch by inch, she made her way into his lap, letting her fingers run through the tiny hairs on the back of his head. "Shrimp Lo Mein, Egg Rolls, Bourbon Chicken, Shrimp and Broccoli, General Taos Chicken and… extra fortune cookies," she enumerated, her mood a little bit better than before.

Because, one thing you had to know about Haley James Scott; she _never_ ordered less than three main dishes of Chinese food. She _had_ to have a variety. "So where'd you stash our son at?" she suddenly thought to ask.

He tilted his head towards the hall, and she excitedly walked into the nursery, and saw the small boy standing up against the rail, looking around the room.

Jay heard his mothers' voice, and his eyes instantly locked on hers as he let out the most adorable smile she'd ever seen. "A-E!" he screeched out excitedly.

Haley couldn't find it in her heart to scold him for calling her by her name, like she usually did; she was just too damn happy to see her little guy. She grabbed him out of the crib and smothered his tiny face with big kisses, making him laugh in the process. "How's mommy's big boy? I missed you today baby. I bet you had a lot of fun with Auntie Brooke and Drew! You wanna eat-eat? Huh? Eat-eat? Let's get daddy to feed you," she asked in a childish tone.

She walked back into the living room to find her husband sitting in front of the television, with a Gatorade in his hand. She plopped Jason down on Nathan's lap and he accepted him of course. Then she heard their home phone ringing, and quickly walked over to answer it.

Nathan listened to the quick conversation, and gave her a puzzled look noticing how quick the call was.

"That was the Chinese place, their car broke down, so I'm gonna go pick up the food really fast."

She was right about fast. She was so fast in getting her jacket and keys, that he didn't even have time to object to _her_ to be the one to get the food. "Could you feed him and give him a bath, or at least feed him before I get back? That way we can eat before it gets cold. I'll be back before you know it," she quickly said and laid a quick kiss to both Nathan and Jay. She afterwards walked out the door, and Jason at once began to fuss, already missing his mommy.

That was apart of her rambling that he _didn't_ like. It happened so fast, and hecouldnt get a word in.

Haley kept her foot on the brake while she waited for the red light to turn green, and decided to get the money for the food ready. She reached into her purse, and looked into her wallet, only to find that she had no money on her. Turning her left signal off, she merged into the right lane making her way just another block down to Bank of America's twenty-four hour ATM. Parking the car, she stepped up to the machine and waited for her money.

_Geeze Hales, you couldn't have worn a warmer jacket, it's freezing out here…come on stupid machine hurry up,_ she thought as she waited. She finally grabbed the two twenty's that was ejected. To her dismay and horror, she then felt a hand cover her mouth from behind and another arm take a firm grasp around her waist.

While desperately trying to fight, she only managed to anger her assailant and as he dragged her towards the back of the building his hands moved to her neck, choking her in the process. After throwing her to the ground, he hit her across her cheek, slicing the soft skin there, then proceeded to rip at the thin jacket that she was wearing. All the while, Haley cried out in protest.

He moved his way up to her jaw, gripping it tightly before smashing his lips onto hers, while she pushed against him as hard as she could. Grasping both of her wrists in one of his hands, his other hand moved in between them and started to undo her pants, making Haley's breathing increase as she fought harder against him.

Using all of her strength, Haley began to kick as hard as she could and finally lodged her knee where she wanted. Feeling her foot in his groin, he bent over in pain and fell on his side while moaning out a series of profanities. Haley, disregarding how much pain she was in, managed to reach into her pocket her cell phone. She dialed _911. _"Help me…someone please help me," she managed to get out before her phone was kicked out of her hand. He kicked her several times in the stomach, allowing her to slowly give into unconsciousness as the attackers footsteps moved further away.

Images of her two boys filled her mind. All she could see was Nathan carrying a naked six month old Jay around dripping wet, and looking very unsure of himself. "I know I said I'd do this alone, but you gotta help me out here Hales.. kid's pissed in this water like three times! That can't be good" She wanted to reach out and take her little boy into her arms and smother her adorable husband with kisses, but before she could take a single step, everything went black.

AN: Well? Next chapter up soon. Click that review button!


	5. Chapter 3 part 2

Chapter 3 Part 2

Nathan rushed into the hospital carrying his crying son on his hip. Jay, who was obviously upset from being awaken from the fast car ride to the emergency room, started to scream louder when his father approached the nurse's desk and started yelling at her, asking where his wife was.

That of course got him nowhere.

"Sir, calm down please. I can give you her information but-"she started but was interrupted when the doctor that Haley was assigned to came towards the three. "Mrs. Scott that just came in, this is her husband," the nurse introduced.

The doctor then approached Nathan and gave him a look once over, before glancing at his clipboard that held her information.

"Where's my wife? What's wrong with her?" Nathan asked confused on what to do. He wanted to scream, but tried his best to stay calm. Actually, he was just trying to keep his temper under control _only_ for Jay's sake. He'd received the call saying that Haley was in the hospital by one of his friends that were visiting someone when they'd seen Haley wheeled in. The hospital hadn't even called him, and he wanted to know why_._ This was complete bullshit if you asked him!

Clearing his throat, the doctor stared intently at Nathan over his square, dark rimmed glasses, and spoke sternly, "Mr. Scott, I want to make it clear that we haven't ruled out _domestic_ abuse." That was the last straw.

"Man you think I hit her? _FUCK YOU!_ Where the hell is my wife?" he asked angrily. His temper, sadly only had his son hysterical in his arms.

The doctor tried to reason with him. "Mr. Scott, bad behavior won't get you anywhere-But before he could continue, Nathan barked out.

"NO! You're telling me, right in front of my face, that I hit my wife! Why? Did someone hurt her?"

At that question, both the nurse and doctor grew quiet, suddenly realizing his honesty in being unaware of what happened with his wife.

Nathan felt the tears welling up in his eyes as he lifted Jason to his chest and tried to calm the baby down, as well as himself. "Just please, let me see my wife. She went out to pick up food for dinner, and was gone for about twenty minutes when my friend called and said he saw Haley being brought in… Just tell me she's okay," he asked as his voice started to falter in ultimate worry and depression. His eyes followed the nurse as she walked back into the room the doctor had just come from.

"Mr. Scott," he started, satisfied when he gained Nathan's attention. "You wife came in pretty banged up. She's got some bruised ribs, a cut or two on her face and a bit of swelling on her left cheek. It looks as if she was almost raped-"

"_Raped?"_ he interrupted.

"_Almost._ Mr. Scott, her pants, underclothes and shirt were still on, and everything was intact when she was found by police." He stopped speaking when the nurse came back in front of the two men and cut-off their conversation.

"She's awake Doctor. I checked her vitals and they all seem normal. She's just very upset of what happened and is asking for her husband."

The doctor nodded his thanks to the nurse and turned to Nathan, who now held the sleeping boy in his arms. "You can go in with her now. I'll be in shortly to discuss the care she'll need for the next week or so. Also, she shouldn't hold the baby, no matter how much she would like to. There's damage to her ribs, and she won't be able to tolerate any weight on them for a while."

Nathan struggled to grasp everything the doctor had been telling him, and wished he could just rewind the night. The thought of someone hurting his family definitely had him upset, but someone physically harming his wife brought a different kind of anger that Nathan kept buried deep down. It was the kind of anger that he'd discovered while he was in theater years ago. After watching someone on his team turn their back on fellow soldiers allowing the enemy the upper hand, Nathan was overcome with anger he didn't think possible. He'd never wanted to hurt someone or kill someone more until this very moment. His wife was his everything. Without Haley, there'd be nothing else.

Bracing himself, Nathan slowly went to Haley and allowed his worried eyes to lock with his wife's hysterically tearful eyes. "Hales, baby, stay in bed. Don't move," he said, noticing that she was trying to stand up. His own voice cracked when he finally reached her and was able to carefully bring her trembling body into his arms. It was then that he realized _his own_ body trembling along with hers. The loud sobs coming from Haley's body were the only noise that existed in the small room as the two continued to hold each other.

Slowly pulling back, he kept a firm, large hand on Jason's back making sure not to disturb him from his sleep. With his free hand, Nathan moved the messy, blondish locks from her forehead and kissed the side of her head.

"I'm so sorry, Haley. I should have never let you go out so late, _especially_ alone….."

_I looked up at Nathan, and could not pay attention to what he was saying; the only thing that went through my mind was how much I loved him. I thought that I would die and never see my husband or son ever again, and just the mere thought almost killed me. I took a closer look and noticed my precious little boy asleep in his father's arms. I couldn't stop myself from reaching out and touching him. He was perfect. God, I love my little boy. The pain taking over my body couldn't be compared to the need to just touch him. There were the little things about him that made me love, and crave him so much; the smell of his skin, the smoothness of his cheeks, the light snoring he gave off when he slept, and the most lovable part of him was the chubby feet that he inherited from my late father. Nathan knew exactly what I wanted and when he brought Jay closer, I was able to rest my face against his dark head of hair and inhale his baby scent. Sadly, tears came faster down my cheeks as I did so and he woke up and looked at me all concerned._

"Take me home Nathan," she pleaded with trembling lips.

Nathan looked at his wife, and could see the fear in her eyes; but behind that, he still saw her strength.

Just two hours later, Nathan carried his once again sleeping child, up on his left shoulder, while his right arm kept a firm grip around Haley's waist. He was very grateful that they'd gotten a first floor apartment.

Once the door was unlocked, Nathan directed Haley to stay on the couch, while he put Jason in his crib, praying that he would sleep through the night. His son was spoiled and usually ended up in their bed at least twice a week. Making sure he had the baby monitor placed in his own bedroom, he walked back out to find Haley dozing off on their couch. Nathan easily lifted her into his arms and brought her to lay on their queen sized bed. She hadn't had anything to change into, so while she didn't feel entirely comfortable wearing the gown, she was able to go right to bed without changing.

After waking her long enough to take the pain medications the hospital had prescribed her, Nathan slowly crept out of their bedroom and softly closed the door behind him before heading towards the closet that held the families washer and dryer. His wife and son were used to the machine being on while they slept and since he knew the noise wouldn't wake them, he turned the machine on the longest setting. There were no clothes in the washer and its only purpose that night served to help drown out the noise Nathan was sure to make.

Nathan grabbed the card that he'd stuffed in his pocket and dialed the number to the officer from his cell phone. He tried to stop his knee from shaking as he sat on the sofa, but nothing he did could calm him down. He was seeing red; pure hatred, and fury at the man responsible for attacking his wife. After getting Officer Moran's voicemail twice in a row Nathan's fist balled up so tight, his cell left his hands red marks and imprints all over.

"Fuck!" he groaned into his hands before dialing another number.

"Hello" groaned the voice on the other end of the line. "Nate? What the hell, you know what time it is man?" Lucas struggled to get out, still half asleep.

"Luke, I need your help, you need to come over here now. Don't start asking all your fucking questions just come over here" he hung up before his older brother could respond and although he knew he should feel guilty for speaking to him that way, once again the anger clouded any other emotion he was feeling.

Nathan walked back into his room to check on Haley and watched her silently from the door. He immediately read the state his wife was in just with one look. On a normal night, it only took Haley about fifteen minutes to roll off of his chest once she fell asleep, and turn on her side of the bed while stealing all of the covers from him. Looking at her now still cuddled on his pillow in a ball and slightly trembling made Nathan's blood boil and his heart ache and race at the same time. His wife was scared and shaking in bed and that bastard was still out there freely walking.

Hearing his front door unlock, Nathan walked out of the room, closed the door and walked towards Lucas who'd clearly rushed over in alarm.

"Nate, what's going on? Is Jay okay? Is it Haley?" he asked calmly seeing the state that Nathan was in. His eyes were red as if he'd been crying, and he was shaking.

Pacing back and forth Nathan wasn't sure what to say to Lucas. He hadn't said the words out loud and to be honest he didn't trust a damn word the doctor or nurse had told him.

"Umm, Haley… she uh, she went to pick up dinner and she left out so fast you know how she is just too damn fast with her talking and I couldn't even get a word in before she was out the door. She stopped by a atm to get money out and some fucker attacked her!" he didn't noticed how much his voice was raised, and Lucas glanced behind him to see if the bedroom doors were closed.

"She was attacked? What does that mean? Like beat up? Like rape.."

"I don't fucking know!" he interrupted Lucas not wanting to hear that word ever again. "All I know is that fucking doctor tells me she was attacked and I walk into the room and see her practically naked in a hospital bed wearing a gown. A damn gown Luke! Why would she be wearing that if nothing happened! And now the cop that was there won't answering his damn phone!" Before he could stop himself, his cell phone flew against the wall at the same time a loud cry came from his sons' room.

"Nathan, you have to calm down, have you talked to Haley? While you were there? On the way home? Did you ask her?" Lucas asked trying to make sense of his brother's serious accusations. He watched as Nathan went over to the cabinet and grabbed one of Jay's bottles before filling it half way with faucet water.

Jay's cries only got louder and before Nathan could respond to Lucas, they both turned at the sound of Haley standing in the doorway to their bedroom. "Nathan" her voice was broken and Nathan was afraid to turn around and face what he knew would break his heart completely. "Nathan, please I need you" Haley's voice once again broke at the end and Nathan wasted no time making his way in front of her and squeezing her body into his. Her sobbing mixed with Jay's cries that were still loud and clear made the tears in Nathan's eyes spill over, no longer able to hold them in.

"Is he okay?" Haley asked worried about her baby boy. The meds hadn't completely took affect and Haley tried not to think of the pressure Nathan was putting on her ribs because she felt so safe being in his arms.

When Nathan didn't respond, Lucas moved quickly into the dark nursery and lifted the hysterical boy into his arms. Coming out of the room, Jay immediately saw his parents and reached out towards them, "dadad…. A-E" you could clearly hear his request for his parents, but Lucas knew now wasn't the time. "Nate, I'm gonna take him home with me, don't worry about him, just take care of Hales. I'll call you tomorrow" Nathan never moved from him embrace, but Lucas saw him give a small nod. Grabbing Jay's diaper bag from the hall closet, and his blanket from his crib, Lucas left the apartment.

Nathan felt Haley's fingernails in his back when she pulled him closer to her and her sobs grew louder now that their son was gone. She was showing him how scared and broken she truly felt. He walked them both back into the room and climbed on the bed pulling her with him.

"There's so much going on in my head right now Hales and you went through this horribly thing .." Nathan spoke quietly to his wife, almost in a whisper as if they were in a room full of people. Placing his hands on each side of her face, careful of the bandage that covered her new cut, he leveled it with his own looking into her tear filled eyes. " just tell me Hales, tell me what he did to you? Did he.. did he rape you?"

Her mouth fell open in shock not understanding why he would ask her that question. "what? wh..wh.. Didn't the doctor say…" he interrupted her.

"I can't Haley. I can't listen to what a doctor, what anyone tells me when it comes to you. I need to hear this from you. I saw you in the hospital gown and it just didn't make sense to me why. No matter what happened, nothing you say will change anything with us. Nothing could ever stop me from loving you so much it burns, from wanting to be with you every single second of every single day. Nothing Haley. I'll always want to be with you and no one else so don't be afraid of telling me anything, no matter what happened out there, you're safe now with me" he had brought his lips to her ear and continued to whisper out more determined words of love and prayed to God that she believed him.

"Baby…I swear to you, he didn't rape me. I swear to you and promise you with everything I am Nathan, he did not rape me" the sound of her voice breaking didn't take away from the determination in her eyes.

She had to let her husband know that he was wrong and more importantly that she was his. _Only _his. Nathan always told her one of his favorite things about her was that she was untouched before they married. As much as she treasured that about herself, Nathan worshiped her for it. He took pride in knowing that no man had ever touched his wife like he had. No man knew the silkiness of her skin, the curves of her back or the weight of her breast in their hands. No marks were left on her neck from extensive make out sessions, or kisses laid on her chest from previous boyfriends, just his. His kisses. His touch. His _seed_. Even only his eyes had been able to claim her naked body. She would always and forever be only his.

Nodding his head, tears refilled Nathan's eyes as he leaned in to softly kiss Haley's trembling lips. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there to save you. He hurt you Haley and I should have been the one out there tonight, not you. Can you tell me what happened, I need to know."

Haley knew there was no way to get out of explaining to him what happened, and she didn't want to keep that secret from her husband knowing he would conjure up his own version until he knew the truth. She sat up on her knees and moved as close in between his spread out legs as she could so that they were face to face. Sitting back on her feet, she took both of his hands in hers and squeezed them before she began.

"I didn't even see him coming. I was just grabbing some cash and before I knew it he was dragging me behind the bank and.. and he hit me so hard and I tried to fight him, but it was like I couldn't stop him… he um.. he held me down and kissed… he kissed me hard on the mouth," Haley had moved Nathan's hands to the sides of her face needing to feel his gentle touch on her skin while reliving the nightmare of the night. " I could.. I could feel his hands move down and he started…. he started… he umm…. I was so scared then Nathan."

"He started what baby" he quietly tried to get the rest out of her while rubbing his thumbs across her cheeks.

Taking a deep breath, she looked down at her lap for a second and when she looked up she let the tears fall rapidly down her cheeks while she spoke loudly now "he started undoing my pants and .. and he tried to put his hands…. but I fought him Nathan, I swear I fought him so hard and I kicked and I just kicked him as hard as I could until I knew I really hurt him and he rolled off and that's what I called 911…. I swear I would have done everything to not let him touch me… he was just so strong, I'm sorry Nathan I almost let that…"

"What? No! Haley this is not your fault! Do you hear me?" he moved up on his knees as well so that their chest were touching and he was slightly hovering over her with his arms cradling her face while he bent his forehead to hers. "this is in no way any of your fault. That guy is a sick bastard that wanted to hurt you in the worst way possible. He wanted to kill a part of you and hurt you more than physically… I'm so sorry baby.. I. I know you'll need time.. so just.. I won't pressure you or anything Hales, just whatever you need I'll do it no matter what." He kissed her forehead and held her close to him.

"I don't.. I don't need time Nathan…you're right he did try to take that away from me.. and away from you. But the fact that only you, my husband, are the only person to ever touch me like that, to ever make love to my body.. he couldn't change that and take that away from us. It's only you and will only be you Nathan, always.. always and forever, just you." Even with the tears gliding down her cheeks, Haley felt a small smile grace her lips when Nathan embraced her once more.

She was more than grateful that nothing else had happened to her and that besides being shaken up and a little bruised, she was perfectly fine. She didn't know how she would have been able to deal with being raped. She thanked God for keeping her safe and not allowing that type of pain for her family.

"I um, I tried to call Officer Moran who was at the hospital, but he never answered. I want them to find this sick bastard and put him away, I just can't deal with him still being out there Hales. I'm gonna do whatever I have to do to make sure you never see him again."

Pushing him down on his back, Haley laid down next to Nathan with her head resting on his chest. She placed her arms around him and gestured for him to do the same. She was grateful for the pressure on her ribs instead of the pain now that her medication kicked in, and although she felt completely safe in her husbands' warm arms tears still spilled from her eyes. "I love you so much.. just hold me Nathan… just hold me."

And he did.

****

**Thoughts? Questions? Be sure to review and let me know what you think! Thanks so much for reading! - Jen**


	6. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

**A/N: Hey everyone, I hope you guys enjoyed the last chapter. It was a chapter that would not be continued, but was an event that happened in Naley's life s is this chapter. Now this one is much shorter, but after this, we skip ahead and things get pretty steady timeline wise. Enjoy and please remember to review.**

* * *

"…Yea he's really not doing to well, so I'm not going to be in today. I'm really sorry for doing this again, but Nate can't get off, and he's just really not feeling any better ," Haley explained to her boss as she walked round and round the room. She then sighed when she hung up the phone, very grateful that her boss hadn't fired her yet.

During the summer, she worked part-time at Gold's Gym, where she was assistant manager. Though, that meant nothing. All she had to do was put in at least twenty hours a week going over the equipment and every Saturday morning before opening, she needed to clean. It wasn't a difficult job, and although they were comfortable with Nathan's income, her twelve dollars an hour allowed the family to live a little lenient.

Turning the humidifier up to the next level, Haley silently prayed that it would help her sickly child. Jason had seen the doctor a day ago when he couldn't seem to get over the cold he had. After the drastic visit to the pediatrician, the parents were everything but relieved to find out their baby had bronchiolitis. The doctor explained to the two that an infants' airway is smaller, therefore the symptoms, i.e. lungs becoming inflamed, swelled and filled with mucus etc., would affect the baby's airways more than an older child.

To break it down, her baby couldn't breathe clearly.

She looked down in the crib and saw his tiny chest cave in as he fought to get a good breath, yet failed miserably. As much as Nathan and Haley hated that their little man was up half the night with trouble breathing, it was worse on Jason. Since he had to breathe through his mouth, it was difficult for him to eat, and the cough he had irritated him more. He'd been given so much medication, that they weren't sure if it was _legal_ to give him anything else. But nothing worked. Cool baths, massaging his small body _with_ the vapor rub, several rides in the car, and constant fluids forced down his throat only pissed off their son even more.

Before her second foot was out the door, the wailing that she'd recognize anywhere filled the small nursery.

Nathan snapped his head up as he heard his name being shouted by his co-worker.

"You hear me Scott? We're going out for some drinks. You in?" Larry asked. He was a fat Spanish man that Nathan had become friends with instantly. The only bad thing about Larry was that he was a constant alcohol-addict with a loud mouth. A loud daring mouth.

Nathan paused to think. "Just one man. I can't be out to late. Jay's still sick"

"Man, he'll be alright," he said to Nathan. He afterwards turned to their other co-workers. "First two rounds on me, guys, okay!"

_Ever heard of the phrase double or nothing?_

Haley closed the door to her apartment for the fifth time that night. Mr. Watson, her neighbor, had come over to check on the family after hearing the baby crying for so long.

He was in his mid-forty's and was really nice to the young couple. He was also very fond of Jason, never having any children himself.

Because of this, Haley tried her best not to get annoyed at his worrisome expression, let alone worried herself.

After trying Nathan's phone for over an hour, she finally gave up, realizing that he wouldn't answer. She knew that he and his friends sometimes went to get a drink on Thursday's, but he also knew that his son had been sick all week. Not one excuse that she came up with seemed to justify him not being home at that very moment. She'd been home with Jay _all day long._ Ever since he'd woken up, all the boy did was scream at the top of his lungs from anguish and pain. She knew he wasn't feeling well and that crying was his only way of communicating to her, but damn, she was frustrated.

Haley walked over to the couch and sat down holding Jason. After a second, she allowed her own tears to escape her eyes. She'd held them in for as long as she could, and now everything she was feeling was coming out in this cry. Anger towards Nathan, sorrow for Jay being miserable, and lastly frustration with herself for not taking better care of her own son.

Moving the child up to her chest, Haley sang to him calmly, allowing him to feel her chest move up and down with every breath. Thinking that he'd finally calmed down- once he grew silent, Haley pulled him away from her chest, and saw that he was trying his best to get a breath in. She looked at him closely for a minute, and rushed the baby into the kitchen where the bright light was on. She then examined his tiny face. Around her baby's mouth, she noticed the color change to a light blue, slowly getting darker. Taking his small hand into her larger one, she saw the shade of blue also surrounding the tips of his fingers.

He couldn't breathe.

As she let out a disturbed sob, she quickly grabbed his blanket and diaper bag, and ran to Mr. Watson's door, banging loudly.

Lucas walked into the bar and scanned the area, anger evident in his eyes. Hearing the loud cheers from one corner, he knew there was the person he was looking for. He made his way over and pushed through the crowd before him, finding his brother cheering for someone.

When Nathan saw him, he walked towards him, until Lucas swung back and knocked him off his feet. The guys he had been cheering with just seconds before, scattered away, not wanting to get involved in the brawl.

"What the hell was that man?" he said getting up, wiping the blood off his lip.

"Nate, it's fucking one o'clock in the morning! Is this where you've been? At some bar?"

"I'm just having a little fun man, is there anything wrong with that?" he carelessly asked.

That just ticked Lucas even more. "A little fun Nate? A little fun? Well while you've been off having your little _fun,_ your wife has been in the emergency room with _your_ son since nine o'clock!"

Lucas could have sworn he saw all the color from Nathan's face drain, as tears immediately coated his eyes. "Wha… what happened? Is it Jason? Lucas, what the hell happened?" he asked outraged and shook his half-brother tremendously.

Lucas ignored him and pulled him by the arm to the car, and speedily drove off to the hospital.

Seconds later they were gone.

"Haley! Haley!" Nathan ran through the ER searching for any sign of his wife. He stopped mid-run, when he spotted her cradled in Brooke's arms, her sister-in-law. That should have been him. He walked over to her and pulled her up to his body and hugged her.

Haley's body went frigid against Nathan's once she realized who was holding her. She tried to move away from his embrace, but he was too strong for her; not to mention she was exhausted. Using all of her strength, she pulled out of his embrace and looked him in the eyes angrily.

"Hales I'm sor.."

_SLAP!_

"I know you're…"

_SLAP!_

Her slaps to her husbands' face soon turned to punches towards his chest.

"I hate you! I hate you, Nathan! Where were you, huh? Our son couldn't breathe! He couldn't breathe, Nathan! He still can't!" She continued pounding on his chest, crying out in frustration. "He was blue. YOUR son was turning blue because he couldn't breathe! And his father didn't even care enough to come home when he KNEW he was sick!"

She finally gave in to his attempts to stop her fist from moving and slumped down against his chest. She let him hold her right there on the floor in the corner of the ER until the doctor approached the somber couple. They stood up, praying for good news.

"I'm sorry Mrs. Scott that you weren't able to be with your son, but we had to work on him at once. We drained the mucus from his lungs, and the swelling is going down. We have Jason on an IV, giving him plenty of fluids. He wasn't dehydrated when he was brought in, so you must have done a good job at keeping him hydrated. Also, his coloring is back to normal, as well as his temperature."

"So is he fine now? There isn't anything else wrong?" Haley asked hopefully.

"He seems to be fine, however, there's always a possibility that it could happen again once he's older, but that's with anyone. I assure you that it wouldn't be as severe as it is now. He's small so he couldn't handle it, but there's no reason to believe that he won't be fine. We tested him for RSV, and the results were negative, so we're very happy with that."

"Can we take him home tonight?" Lucas spoke up, seeing that Haley was too dazed to say anything.

"Well I would like to keep him here overnight as a precaution and to make sure he easily gets a lot of fluids in him. Just for tonight I assure you, his stats are improving tremendously. Besides, as bad as he _was,_ I'm sure _someone _had to have been up with him just about all day," he started as he saw Haley who looked even more drained than when he first saw her. "Take advantage of the break. I'm sure you'll want to stay overnight with him, so I can give you an overnight pass. Do you need two or just one?"

Before anyone could say anything, Haley spoke up loud and _clear_, "Just one please"

Nathan's worried eyes traveled to his wife's sad ones when he heard the words come out of her mouth. The doctor looked at the two before writing Haley her pass, and left them alone.

"Lucas, Brooke, thank you guys so much for coming. I'm sure you need to go get Drew. Can I call you tomorrow when they discharge Jay? I don't have my car," she said directing her question towards her sister in law. She decided to just ignore Nathan, who could easily drive her home.

"Haley, I can-" Nathan started.

"Brooke? Please?" she asked while her voice cracked. She couldn't even look at her husband right now. She was just plain hurt.

Brooke was of course on Haley's side. "Yea Hales, just give me a call and I'll bring your car up and take you guys back home." Both she and Lucas hugged Haley, then left.

Haley stood next to the oversized, gated crib that her sleeping son lay in. Resting her hand above his chest, tears ran down her cheeks from the feel of his even breathing.

Happy Tears

"Thank you God. Thank you so much for watching over my little boy. I love you so much, baby. Mommy's right here and she's not going anywhere. I promise," she whispered over the baby. She pulled the blanket over him a little tighter and walked out of the room quietly to where Nathan was sitting on the floor.

"I don't really have anything to say to you Nathan," she uttered coldly as she walked pass him.

He stood up to follow her. "I know sorry doesn't mean anything right now Haley, but I am. I'm so sorry I wasn't here. I was just so tired and stressed…" he tried, but Haley cut him off.

"Stressed? _You _were stressed Nathan? I was home with him _all_ damn day stressed out, ALONE! You KNEW he was sick when you left out for work, and it didn't matter to you that I was alone with him? Even if I wasn't alone Nathan, you should love and care enough for your son to want to be there regardless of how many people are with him."

"Haley…" he tried yet again.

Still he miserably failed.

"Do you know what it was like Nathan?" she cried, tears flowing down of her cheeks so fast. "Mr. Watson drove us to the ER while I held our _blue_ son in my arms! All I could do was hold him and tell him that mommy was here! You know how hard it was not to cry when all I could feel was his chest contracting because he couldn't breathe? I wanted to _die,_ Nathan, because I just knew I was losing our little boy. I knew it! And all I wanted was you! I needed my husband Nathan, and Jason needed his father. But where were you?"

As much as she wanted to, she really couldn't hate him. But she wanted to so bad. "Go see your son, Nathan. Put your hand on his chest, and feel his heartbeat. Let him know you're there with him."

Nathan walked into the small room that had a bed set up next to his son's temporary crib and finally let his own tears escape his eyes. Like Haley told him, Nathan placed his hand over the baby's chest and felt his consistent heartbeat. It was beautiful.

"Jay, daddy's here, buddy. I know I wasn't before, but daddy's here now. And I'm so proud of you. You're so strong Jay, you're my strong big boy, remember. I love you so much buddy, and I promise I won't let you or mommy be alone like this again. I promise Jay." He leaned down and placed a soft kiss on the sleeping boy's lips that resembled his own. Leaning back up, he heard a sniffle at the door, and saw Haley who'd obviously heard his one-sided conversation. He walked out the door after her.

"I meant what I said Haley. I'm so sorry. But I promise it will never happen again"

"Never again Nathan," she pointed out. "I don't ever want to face something like this alone. I can't and I won't. You need to figure out what's important in your life."

"You and Jason," he said without hesitation. "I promise Hales. I promise"

Slowly, Haley walked into Nathan's embrace, fiercely hugging him and finally letting her guard down crying. It had been such a long day.

_Another milestone…. We made it  
_

* * *

**Thoughts? Hit that button! Thank you to everyone that's added this story to their alerts and author alerts and favorites! Means so much to me! Next chapter will skip ahead into the future so be prepared for that! Please leave feedback! I love it and it really motivates me!**

**Until next time,**

**Jennifer**


	7. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

AN: Okay, so here it is guys! We're skipping ahead into the future by about three years and two months!

* * *

"Can we go _now_ mommy?"

"Mommy's not listening to you Jay. I told you no. Mommy has one more patient to see okay," she told her impatient little boy.

"A boy or girl?" He questioned, always curious about his mothers' patients.

"A baby girl now behave and I'll be back soon."

Haley walked down the hall towards the NICU and after scrubbing her hands, she tended to one of the smallest babies there. She'd finally finished Med School, and gone through all the necessary training and rotations to complete all her requirements to start her full Neonatal career. Jay was nearly two years old when she'd gotten down with Medical School, and it had taken her the past two, plus years working at SAMC to get to the level she was currently at. She was now a fulltime Level Three Neonatal Nurse Practitioner at San Antonio Medical Center, just minutes from her home.

The family of three now had a beautiful home in the suburbs of San Antonio. The only downside to moving was that they weren't as close to the other Scotts as they once were. About two years ago they'd rented a small townhouse but had no use for a permanent home at the moment since the family rarely found themselves in town. Lucas, like any child psychologist started putting his work into writing. He'd been flown all over sharing his best selling books and speaking at numerous events and even used for cases with child services. He'd made it very clear when he signed up for a five month conference tour, that Brooke and Drew would have to join him, and that they would be accommodated as much as possible.

It had been a struggle at first since Brooke wasn't sure if she should uproot Drew right out of his pre-school, and force him to move around like a nomad. In the beginning she put her foot down and decided that Drew and herself would stay and let Lucas see them every other weekend. The first week that he was gone, Drew's behavior made it very clear that this arrangement would not work. He'd cried every day, and especially at bedtime begging for his daddy to tuck him in and read to him like he did every night. Brooke, at the moment, thought things would be okay, reminding herself that this was the first week away from Lucas, and it would get better.

That is until she received a call at 2:39 that night.

Lucas had called her practically crying his eyes out telling her that she either had to fly herself and their boy out tomorrow, or he'd break his contract and deal with the consequences; being away from his family was too much to bear. So that's where that family was now, touring the west coast. They all missed each other and the two weekly calls plus Skype kept them up to date with their lives; not to mention numerous texting went on between the two females. The tour was nowhere near over, but they had already put in an offer on a house three blocks from Haley and Nathans' and they had high hopes of getting it. Waiting was the hardest part, and the families couldn't wait to reunite.

Normally Jay would be in pre-school, but last nights' mini ice storm closed down the city's schools. When anything like that happened, the parents only had three options. One of Nathan's best friends from his unit that lived close by with his wife and child would take Jay for a few hours until Haley was off.

Haley really loved Matt since the first time she'd met him years ago and his wife Tonya and she had grown pretty close as well with all the play dates their kids had.

The other two options included Jay's parents. Nathan's enrollment in a few extra business classes helped him take over the auto mechanic shop that he'd once worked fulltime at. His ownership of the business allowed him to take off as much as was needed, especially for his family.

He often recalled the day one of his new mechanics came into his office and started to nervously ask him to take a day off the following week because his daughter needed dental work and he was the only one that could calm her down. "I know that's not a good excuse sir, but umm.. I really don't think my wife will be happy with me cause she's never gone to the dentist without me, and she'll just freak. She's six, but she's my baby and I just really need the time off, I'll even do doubles next weekend" Nathan had motioned for him to have a seat before handing him and cold water from his mini fridge, then told him about the day he nearly learned the hard way to put his family first. He'd never forgotten that day, and made sure his employees knew of it.

That was one rule he established first to his workers, they had to put their families first. If shop had to be closed, shop had to be closed. He wondered if he should be worried about people slacking and making false claims just to get off, but he had good relationships with the guys, and no one used it to their advantage.

Although he loved working there, Nathan rarely could bring Jay to work with him at his age. He was still mischievous and had to touch everything, and this wasn't the place to do that. The machinery they used was far too dangerous for the young boy to be around.

Nathan was still enlisted in the army and they all dreaded the day he would be called away on active duty.

That's why he went to work with Haley. He would stay in the children's play area allowing a few of Haley's co-workers to take turns looking after him on their breaks. He enjoyed playing at "Mommy's Hospital" as he called it.

* * *

Haley left her office carrying her and Jay's coats as well as his small backpack with Nemo on it. Walking towards the play room, she glanced down at her watch and noticed that Nathan was supposed to have been there ten minutes ago. Upon entering the room, she smiled at her small son passed out on the blue and white striped miniature couch.

Emptying her hands, she dressed him in his tiny pea coat like his fathers along with his scarf and hat. Getting their stuff together once again, she lifted him into her arms and left out towards the elevator. When the bell signaled for her floor, the doors opened and she was relieved to see her husband smiling back at her.

"Hey" he said when she stepped into the elevator. He leaned down and kissed her.

"How was your day?" she asked him pressing the button that would take them to the parking garage.

"It was good, how was he?" He knew to ask. Their son was an angel, but sometimes they had a Tasmanian devil on their hands.

"It was a pretty busy day; he talked my ear off every time he saw me asking when we were going to see you" she rolled her eyes at her husband who was clearly the "favorite" today.

"Here, let me take him" he said lifting him from her arms, knowing he could get heavy after a while.

Before reaching the car, Nathan started it and unlocked the doors, sending Haley a smirk when she rolled her eyes once again at him. Her husband loved his little gadgets. He also didn't want his wife or son in the cold for long. He buckled Jay into his car seat and climbed into the black Suburban. Nathan drove the short distance to their house knowing that Haley wanted to change before dinner.

Tonight they were having dinner over Matt and Tonya's house. They were three years older than the couple, and their little girl was the same age as Jay. They tried to get together a few times a week knowing that their kids got along good, and that they also got good adult interaction. With Brooke and Lucas being gone, they had to have someone around to hang with.

Haley moved fast throughout the house, while the two boys waited in the car. She didn't need to dress up or anything, they were practically family. She passed by the kitchen and grabbed the brownies she'd made the night before to bring over.

By the time she got back into the SUV, Jay was in the front seat straddling her husbands' lap. From the serious look in his little blue eyes, she could only assume it was a serious conversation.

"Does Santa _always _know what I'm doin?" Jay asked with a wide expression.

"Yep" was Nathan's dry answer.

"But I was good right daddy?"

"Yea buddy, you were good" he answered his son honestly.

"So I _will_ get a puppy then!" he said hopeful.

"I don't know Jay, Christmas is still far away. Get in your seat lil man." he said wanting to end the ridiculous discussion, but also knowing that Haley was ready to get going to now.

Haley looked back and made sure that he was fastened in, and they pulled off.

"Mommy question" he said from his booster seat.

"What is it my sweet baby boy" she said laughing at the look Nathan gave her.

"Daddy said I'm not a baby so you not apposed to call me that" he said displaying the same face as his father.

"Well, daddy didn't go through nineteen hours of labor pushing you out of his body, and it's _you're not suppose_. What's your question Jason?" she said eyeing Nathan.

"What were you and daddy doing last night?" wrinkling his brow.

"When Jay?" Haley asked praying it wasn't what she was thinking.

"You kept on calling his name, and he was calling you Haley James, but that's not your name anymore." He had been wondering why his daddy would be calling his mommy her old name.

"Jay, me and mommy were playing."

His answer was innocent, but Haley could see the smirk on his face the minute Jay's question left his mouth. Haley couldn't believe that their son had heard them making love, and with her flushed face she was in a rush to change the subject.

"So Jay, you excited about you and daddy going to your first basketball game?"

"Yes! Ginovi and Pwarker are my fwavorite" He said giggling out loud.

"Mine too… what time does it start?" she said directing her question to the older Scott.

Taking his eyes off the road for a second, Nathan squinted before answering her, "Umm… tip off's at seven sharp, so we're gonna get there at about six."

"Maybe we should keep him up tonight a little later, that way he can sleep late, and be up for the game.

"Jay, remember the thing I showed you yesterday.. show mommy" he said harmlessly ignoring his wife's question.

"Look mommy"

Turning her head, she silently told him to continue. Waiting patiently, she watched as the small boy brought one of his hands to his mouth, and quickly waved it out towards her, a huge smacking noise following. "Don't say that I nevor' gave you anyfing" Haley's eyes immediately shut, remembering that day in her mind.

She and Nathan were at the movies, and he insisted that he _had_ to have Cracker Jacks while watching the chick flick she had chosen. Once he found the prize he'd ripped it open and met her gaze while slipping the tacky bracelet on her small wrist uttering those same words his son had. Haley had found it _incredibly _sexy.

"Teaching him how to win girls over already huh?" she said somewhat scolding him.

"Well I figured someone's gotta, so why not learn from the best… I mean, I _did_ have you wrapped around my finger in no time Hales." He smirked as they pulled into the driveway of Matt's house.

Haley was the first to get out, and walked around to let Jay out of his seat behind Nathans'. When the little boy saw the houses' front door open, he made a dash for the tall man that stood there, while his parents lagged behind.

"You think you're cute Scott?" She said slipping her hand into his back pocket and pinching his ass.

"No, but you do… looks like you want Jay to hear you scream my name tonight" he said when she removed her hand from his pocket and fully squeezed his left cheek.

"You're not that cute" She pushed away from him and walked into the house after her son, purposefully swaying her hips to tease him.

Tonya had Jay in her arms, when she came out to see Nathan finally making his way into the house after his wife. "Is Logyn here daddy?" Tickling the silly boy's belly, he replied, "I don't know you goof, why don't you go and see" He wriggled his way out of her arms, and made a dash for the steps that led to Logyn's play room in the basement. "Slow down Jay" he yelled after him.

Tonya smiled and looped her arm around his, dragging him into the kitchen with the other adults. It was so easy to see that Nathan loved that little boy with everything in him. You would have never guessed what a nervous wreck the two were when the three-day-old baby was finally released from the hospital. Running to every gurgle. Staring at his rising chest while he slept every ten minutes. Changing diapers on every single squirt of pee. Haley crying every time he cried. And Nathan refusing to hold him unless he was sitting down with a pillow; terrified of dropping him. They were so young and hadn't expected to get pregnant so soon, but welcomed the new adventure.

Her friends had grown so much. They were now pros.

After talking for a while over dinner, they all went their separate ways as usual. The two four year olds retreated to Logyn's room and watched what Haley called "age-appropriate movies", while carefully eating their dessert on the floor. Nathan and Matt were down in the basement concentrating on an intense game of pool, while Haley and Tonya relaxed on the patio, kid free.

Once it got dark, the ladies went to join the kids, and eventually fell asleep by the ending.

"Hey man, what time is it?" Nathan said pausing and looking up from his shot.

"A little after 10:30" Once he said the words out loud, he knew why his friend was asking him. It was past bedtime.

"I need to get them in bed. Thanks man, I had fun kicking your ass in pool how many time? Five? I needed some fun" he chuckled out with a matching smirk.

"I know, that's why I let you win."

They made their way up both flights of stairs, and went into the purple and yellow covered room and laughed at the two kids, stretched out on their respective mothers' chest. Both men leaned down and picked up the youngsters, and unlike Haley, Tonya immediately woke up.

"Ya'll gettin ready to go?" She said unsuccessfully holding in a big yawn.

"Yea, it's late and Haley's on the 6:30 shift in the morning"

They all knew that Haley would refuse to wake up if they tried. Nathan usually tried to leave to go home before she fell asleep because she always fought with him when he tried waking her up.

"Hales, baby you needa' get up, we gotta go" All he got back was a groan as she turned away from his voice.

"Hales" he tried once again. He knew the only real way to get her up, was to get her… well _up_. Turning to his friends, he dug his keys from his jacket pocket.

"Hey, could you guys take him out, and start the car for me. I'm gonna get her up"

They both nodded and tried not to laugh at his smirk. "Don't forget my kid is asleep in here Scott, try to keep it PG" Tonya joked before following her husband out of her daughters room.

Haley didn't know that he had long ago bragged and spilled about his secret way of waking his wife, but in the same respect, Nathan hadn't been aware of Tonya's knowledge of his dirty tricks.

When they walked out of the room, and headed for the front door, Nathan sat down beside Haley on the floor and eased her into his lap. This was one side of her that no one else saw. Not the lazy side, the sexy side_._ He took a hold of her chin, turning her so that she was facing him, and quickly covered her mouth with his. He loved waking her up this way, all it took were a few kisses, and she'd be awake, and every once in a while unfortunately wanting to make love.

He pulled back, and then kissed the corner of her mouth, knowing that it drove her wild. He maneuvered his way down to her jaw, and when his mouth came in contact with the base of her neck, he felt her hands grip his hair, and pull him closer. He pulled back and looked up at the sleepy smile that played on her lips. "Do I really have to get up?"

"Yea, you gotta get up for work and Jay needs to get to bed. Come on" After lifting her up, he wrapped his arm around her waist, knowing that she was still a bit sluggish. Making sure she was actually buckled into her seat, he closed her door then thanked his friends and they were on their way.

Getting into the drivers seat and buckling up, Nathan wasn't surprised when he felt his wife wrap her arms around his bicep and completely rested against him. She did this whenever she was tired and they were in the car, and although it wasn't the most comfortable position, he secretly loved it. Every time they would stop at a light, he'd hear her whisper, "kiss me" and he obeyed every time with no objection.

When they pulled up to the house, he had her go in while he got Jay out and ready for bed. After changing his son into his pajamas, he placed him into the middle of his full size bed and kissed him goodnight. "Night buddy, daddy loves you"

Haley had already changed and was passed out on his side of the bed when he walked into the room just minutes later. Once he changed his clothes, he eased her over and climbed into the bed, wrapping his arms around her middle immediately. Taking one of his hands in hers, Haley brought it to her lips and softly kissed his knuckles before hugging the hand to her chest. "Love you" she mumbled before succumbing to sleep. "I love you Haley"

* * *

Nathan knew he was hearing something moving about his room but tried his best to block it out. Haley had already rolled over, and out of his embrace leaving him lying on his back and trying his best to fall asleep again. He was nearly asleep until he heard the noise again.

He slowly opened his eyes and looked over at his wife's sleeping form, and only then did he noticed her start to lightly snore. He closed his eyes for a second and opened them back up when he felt someone tugging on the sheet. Haley turned over, and finally, like every night, had all the covers. Pulling a few inches of the cotton sheets over his body and away from her, he was finally able to close his eyes for more than five minutes.

He ignored the moving he felt on the bed and tried his best to not give into the activity his brain was stirring up until he felt a small weight land on his chest. His eyes popped open, and he saw his son's big watery eyes staring back at him. Lip trembling.

"What's wrong buddy" he asked in relief. There was just a part of him that completely freaked out and he was glad to see that the intruder couldn't do much harm. He eased his way out of bed and lifted Jay into his arms.

"No nightlight" was his simple reply.

Nathan cursed under his breath knowing he'd forgotten something. Haley was the one that turned on the nightlight when they tucked Jay in at night. He continued to walk around while Jay laid against his strong chest, and rubbed his back in hopes of lulling him to sleep like he did when he was only a couple of months old.

"Go back to sleep buddy" he whispered into the darkness.

"Big bed"

"Alright, come on. You can sleep in the bed with me and mommy tonight" He figured he might as well. It was their fault he'd awaken to a darkened room alone.

Moving closer to the bed, he laid him down in the middle then climbed in himself. Before he could get comfortable, the four year old folded himself against his father's side and snuggled into his warmness. Kissing his thick brown hair, Nathan peeked down at him and saw that he was already asleep, not even needing the comfort of his fingers that night.

Haley woke up the next morning with two little feet directly in her face. Moving them, she glanced at the clock that read _5:01: am_. She'd woken up just minutes before her alarm was set to go off. She switched it off, not wanting the noise to wake her sleeping boys, and went to get in the shower.

She had been in for about ten minutes when she heard Nathan come in a take a long piss. After stepping out of the shower, she grabbed her towel off the rack and wrapped it around her. While he finished up, Nathan watched her go to the sink and start brushing her teeth. Coming up behind her, he kissed her wet neck, and then her cheek.

"Has anyone ever told you, you look sexy as hell at 5 am? If Jay wasn't asleep in our bed, I'd take you in there and have my way with you before you left" he said smiling at her through the mirror.

"Well it's a good thing he's in there 'cause I'm already gonna be late if I don't hurry up."

She walked out of the bathroom and quickly got dressed and grabbed her coat, finally sitting all her things by the door. She still had thirty minutes until she had to leave, so she went to make herself a bagel and a cup of coffee, while listening to the weather channel in the living room. After realizing time was running out, she went back into the master bedroom and kissed Jason's cheek, then went to the other side and gave Nathan one on his forehead.

When she started to pull away, he pulled her head down back to his and kissed her passionately. This was too much at _6:15_ in the morning; not that they hadn't had countless early morning activities, but she knew she should be leaving out for work. Pulling away from him, she laughed when he moaned in disagreement.

"Don't tempt me Nate. I need to go. You two still coming up for lunch right?"

"Yea, we should be there no later than one. Don't go to work Hales" He said whining, but honestly just wanting his wife to snuggled up in bed with him.

"I have to. This is the last month of Saturday's I'm working for like four months. We've all had to take turns on this awful shift. I'll see you two later. Love you."

"Yea, yea get outta here, before I change my mind." He said smirking at her before rolling over, fully intending on going back to sleep.

* * *

**AN: Thanks guys so reading. Leave some feedback. What do you think of the jump? I know it's a pretty big gap, but a few things have been explained, and in later chapters, some other things will be brought up from the past If anyone's on twitter, follow me JenOdomOth ! can't wait to hear from you guys! Review!**

**-Jennifer**


	8. Chapter 6

**AN: Hello readers. So numbers went down a ton with last chapter, but I'm going to be an optimist and chalk it up to tons of finals, graduations, and happenings in life keeping people super busy. Any who, I've combined the next two chapters, so you'll have a long one here, and I hope that you enjoy it! Can't wait to get some feedback. This one picks up right after the last chapter with Haley leaving for work in the morning, and Nathan and Jay left in bed. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill or any of its characters! They belong to Mark S, his writing team and the CW/WB.**

* * *

Nathan was up again at nine-thirty. It was one of the two days he was able to sleep in and he always took advantage of it. He also got to get Jay ready; something Haley always had the pleasure of doing every morning.

Getting out of the shower, he dressed in a pair of boxers and tee shirt he'd brought in knowing his son would be up when he was finished. When he walked into his room, he saw Jay on the bed with the remote in front of him.

"What you watching man?" he asked his son while he went in the closet to pick out his clothes for the day.

"Fwanklin, but it's ovor' now. SpongeBob's on daddy."

"What's he doin today?" he said, always taking interest in his son's favorite cartoon.

"Working at the Cwabby Patty with Patwick" he said laughing. He obviously thought it was the funniest thing, although he was there almost every episode.

"Man, you gotta learn howda' talk" He said poking fun at his son's common speech impediment.

"I _can_ talk daddy!" he said scowling at his father. Nathan could have sworn it was the same one his wife constantly threw at him.

Nathan walked away and started to straighten up the room, knowing he and the four year old would get into it if he didn't let him watch the childish show. Walking into the bathroom, he brought out the huge clothes hamper that stayed in there and took it to the washroom that was right off the garage. After retrieving Jay's small one out of his bathroom, he started up a load of darks; combining all their clothes together.

He was so grateful when Haley told him they didn't need to separate Jay's clothes from theirs anymore. He understood when he was a baby, but Haley still refused to wash their son's clothes with anything but Dreft until recently. She had good reason though. Their son had plenty of allergies, and broke out easily, so she could never be too sure.

After about an hour, Nathan was able to put the white clothes in the dryer and started to fold the first load.

But first, breakfast.

Nathan grabbed a toaster strudel from the freezer and popped it in the toaster, then put the icing pack in the microwave for a few seconds. As much as Haley hated buying those, she knew it was the only way to get her husband to eat. Unless she cooked breakfast, he would only eat the sugar packed strudels. If there weren't any in the house, he'd gulp down Gatorade until he was full, and wait until lunch. So she had no choice. He was _such_ a _guy_.

"Jay, come eat some breakfast buddy" He hollered towards his room, already getting down the Luck Charms.

He refused to eat any other cereal.

"Is it Lucky Charms?" he asked once he'd turned off the TV and ran in the kitchen. Nathan never understood why he asked. He was usually present when the grocery shopping was done, and they only ever bought that kind and Cinnamon Toast Crunch.

_Guess he loves to be reassured_. Nathan thought to himself.

"You know it" he said watching him climb onto the stool at the island.

"Can I call mommy?" he said after a few spoonfuls.

"In a minute"

They both finished up eating, the older Scott of course finishing first, and returning to fold the clothes. Once Jay was done, he put his bowl in the sink, and went into his room watching his dad putting his fresh clothes up in their respective drawers.

"You want to call mommy now?" he asked once he was done.

Seeing him nod, he made his way into the master bedroom and dialed the familiar numbers knowing she would have her cell on vibrate in her pocket.

"_**Hey"**_

"Hey Hales"

"_**Did you sleep well after I left?**_

"Yea, are you busy? Jay wants to talk to you"

"_**No, I can talk for a minute" She smiled when she heard buttons being pressed, knowing that her son had trouble grasping the huge phone.**_

"Hi mommy!" he smiled into the phone.

"_**Hey baby, you having fun with daddy?"**_

"Yes, we ate lucky charms. Are we coming to see you today?"

"_**Yea, for lunch you are. And you go to your basketball game tonight with daddy remember."**_

"Yep, I 'member mommy! I get to see Ginovi and Pwaker." He said pumping his tiny fist in the air.

"_**I know, so I'm gonna see you at lunch time okay? Love you"**_

"Love you too mommy"

"_**Let me talk back to daddy"**_

"Hey" he said after a few seconds.

"_**Hey, so there's this little girl that was born with a ton of problems with her heart and a blocked artery. Guess who's the lucky nurse scrubbing in?"**_

"Well, Hales you always tell me there's no guarantee, but you'll do your best. That's all that matters. You'll be fine."

"_**I'm just so nervous and scared. I've never scrubbed in on a surgery this detailed and difficult on an infant this small"**_

"Don't think all negative Hales. We need to get ready, so we'll see you in a little while. I love you"

"_**I love you too, see you two soon"**_

Looking over at the clock, Nathan saw that he only had an hour and fifteen minutes until he needed to be at the Medical Center for lunch.

"What is that smell?" He asked coming over to sniff around Jay.

"I dunno!" he said giggling while his dad sniffed his neck and stomach, while tickling him.

"Man you stink! I _have_ to give you a bath before mommy smells you and throws you away." With that he scooped him up, carrying him upside down over his shoulder while the young boy had a tight hold on his father's arm.

"Big tub with bubbles! Big tub with Bubbles!" he said kicking his feet wildly.

Changing directions, Nathan turned right, walked through his bedroom, and into the huge bathroom that sat off his room. While fixing the temperature of the water, Jay took the liberty of stripping his night clothes off, and using the toilet.

That was something both parents had to be strict about with their four year old. He'd get so excited about the water, and usually urinated right in the clean water. So every time he was given a bath, he _had_ to use the bathroom before getting in.

Once Nathan put the cap full of bubbles in the water, he turned to see Jay's arms lifted, ready to be put in the gigantic Jacuzzi tub. After letting Jay bathe himself, Nathan took a hold of the washcloth and went over the young boys cleaning job. Before Nathan could reach for the shampoo, he heard his cell phone ring out in the kitchen.

"Jay, sit down while I get the phone, and be careful" He said looking in his eyes. He knew he had to stare him down for him to know that he was serious and wasn't joking.

"k daddy" he said nodding his head, before sending a smirk in his direction.

While Nathan went to get the phone, Jay looked around the tub, and saw all the different bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and body wash his parents used. He picked up the bottle of shampoo and figured it was just like his, but it wasn't.

On his hair, Haley used Johnson's Tear Free shampoo, but this was Haley's Garnier Fructis, which Jay poured in his hands and began to rub it in his hair. Haley allowed him to do this with his own shampoo, but he wasn't aware of the difference in the two bottles. After he covered his head in shampoo, he leaned forward and dunked his head in the water and came back up.

Eyes Open.

The stream of water came down from his head and fell immediately in his eyes. He felt the two brown orbs start to burn and he started to rub them, but seeing as though he already had shampoo on his hands, it made it worse. He then let out the loudest cry and screams while his little eyes continued to burn.

Nathan, hearing Jay's cries, ran back into the bathroom. He saw his son standing up rubbing his eyes and saw the shampoo bottle open and he instantly knew he'd try to wash his hair.

"Jay, calm down. I got you, don't rub your eyes"

"It burns daddy" he cried out in pain.

He carried him into the kitchen, where the deep sink was, and ran the cool water. He had to restrain his hands with his forearm and open his eyes up to pour the water in.

"Buddy, I gotta get the soap out. Stay still." He knew it was hurting him, and he couldn't stand the feeling of his little body fighting under him still. "Daddy's sorry, but I don't want your eyes to keep burning. One more time okay."

He poured one more cup of cool water over Jay's eyes, and then turned the water off. He lifted the crying child up in his arms and held him, while he laid his head on his shoulder. He carried him back into the room, and covered him with the towel that had been discarded only minutes ago. Walking around for a few minutes, Nathan continued to rub his sons back, calming his cries, until all he heard were sniffs here and there.

Walking into Jay's room, he sat down on the bed, and held him at arm's length on his lap in order to look at his eyes.

"Let me see your eyes Jason. Can daddy see your eyes?" he said feeling somewhat guilty for leaving him in the tub alone. It wasn't the first time they'd done it, he was four now and was able to be left alone for minutes at a time in the tub, but he still knew his son. His son the Daredevil.

He helped Jay open his eyes, and saw that they were pretty red. Sitting the little boy on the bed, he got out his clothes for the day, and dressed him. He was wearing a pair of faded blue Gap jeans, a white long-sleeve thermal shirt, with a red shirt over it. Looking around the room, he found the small Timberland boots and put them on his feet, and afterwards changed the now wet shirt that he was wearing.

He was running so late to meet Haley for lunch.

He got out Jay's coat with matching hat and gloves and made sure he was tightly bundled up. Putting on his black coat, he grabbed a fresh washcloth and ran cold water on it. After rinsing the cloth, he handed it to Jay.

"Buddy, you need to hold this over your eyes okay? It'll make them feel better." He watched as he put it on his eyes, and picked him up to carry him out to his SUV.

Nathan buckled him in the booster seat, and the two Scott's made their way to the hospital to see Haley.

When they pulled up to the hospital, it was _1:25_. He parked, and saw Haley approaching the car, once he called her to let her know they were here.

"Well, look who's late? I guess it's a good thing, I have a long break today." She said settling herself in the seat next to him

"Haley, we had a small accident this morning in the tub"

"What do you mean? What happened?"

She looked at Nathan, then in the backseat and saw Jay asleep with a washcloth in his hand. Looking closely, she could see the red, and puffiness around his eyes.

"I was giving him a bath when my cell rang, so I went to get it and was gone for like two minutes when I hear him screaming. I ran back in, and there was shampoo everywhere. He was trying to wash his hair."

"Oh God, did you rinse his eyes out?" She went about unbuckling her seat belt and hopped out of the front seat, only to jump in back, scooting close to her sleeping son.

She gently pulled open his eye lids and saw the slight redness. It wasn't that bad, but she was still worried.

"Of course I rinsed them out Haley!" he said somewhat upset at her insinuation.

"Well did you ask him things, to make sure that he could see alright?"

She knew his answer, from his silence.

"Wake up baby. Come on Jay, it's time to wake up." He slowly started to wake up, and take in his surroundings.

"Mommy, I hurt my eyes in the bath" he said, rubbing his hand on her face, something he always did as a baby.

"I know, daddy told me. Does it still hurt baby?" she said leaving feather-like kisses all over his face.

She continued to coddle him, while Nathan drove to the restaurant.

After eating lunch, the family of three made their way back to the hospitals' entrance to drop Haley off.

"Love you baby, make sure you be good for daddy and have fun at your game. I'll see you in the morning."

"Why in the morning?"

"Well, you'll be asleep when you get home. You'll be really tired. I gotta go, gimmie kisses" She said leaning forward and rubbing her nose against his for a few seconds. Kissing his cheek with her lips, she pulled back and went to the drivers' window.

"Dress warm tonight, it's freezing. And make sure you guys have fun."

"We will, good luck today on your surgery and remember, I love you and you are more than qualified to do this."

"I love you too. I'll see you tonight" She kissed him and left.

* * *

After an eventful day for the both of them, Nathan tucked Jay into his bed after changing his clothes. He'd been out as soon as Nathan carried him over the mass of Spurs fans celebrating their win.

Nathan thought of how he used to celebrate their winning drinking and partying with his friends. He definitely preferred watching his son cheer throughout the whole game, sharing a nice cold apple juice and tucking the exhausted boy into bed.

Going into his room, he turned on Sports Center to look at while he changed and waited for Haley to get in.

Haley sat in her car for a few more minutes trying to get herself together before going in. Her day had been terrible, and she didn't want to get home only to put a damper on Nathan's mood. She knew the Spurs had won, meaning her husband and son had a great night. She had been crying since she witnessed the doctor tell the horrible news to the waiting parents, and all she wanted to do was erase the day she'd had.

When she walked in the master bedroom, Nathan gave her a worried expression. He'd heard the garage door open, and knew she'd been out in the car for some time.

"Hey.. talk to me, how was work?" he said coming closer to her and intertwining his fingers with hers.

"It was _work_. How was the game?" she said ignoring his question.

"How was the surgery?" he wasn't letting her off easy.

"I heard the Spurs won." Her voice trembled as she turned away from him, and he noticed.

"Stop. Haley, talk to me." Grabbing her hips, he turned her back towards him. That's when he saw the tears slowly streaming down her face. "The baby died." She said just above a whisper.

"It wasn't your fault Hales" He pulled her into his embrace, knowing she blamed herself.

"I wasn't good enough to be on the team, it was my fault Nathan. We weren't quick enough and she was just so small."

"Come here" he led her to their bed, and held her while she cried that night. He knew it would take her a while to get over this, and he would be there no matter what.

"It's gonna be okay Haley.. it'll be okay," he wasn't sure how many times he repeated the mantra, but he didn't stop until her breathing evened out and she was asleep for the night.

* * *

After losing the young life on the operating table, Haley could only give credit to Nathan for helping her through that rough time. It had been a good two months since Haley's team lost the baby, and they had finally begun to move on. They had been with the case since the beginning and it was a hard loss on her department.

But that didn't stop Nathan from worrying about her.

For the last few weeks, he'd notice his wife start to bury herself in her work and watched her slowly put their son and himself on the back burner. He didn't like that.

It was only Tuesday, and her week was only getting more stressful. She came home from work and immediately got into writing profiles on her patients that were past due. Looking out of her office, and towards the new noise in the house, she saw Nathan come in carrying Jay who was talking at the speed of light.

He'd just spent the weekend at Deb and Dan's house, and they spoiled him rotten, meaning he _always_ had so much to tell. As soon as he was places on the ground by his father, he ran into the office and started babbling non-stop.

"….and we saw Uncle Mike, and look what grandma got me"

"Not now baby"

"But look mommy, it's a racecar" He desperately wanted to show his mommy his new toy.

"Jay, not now, mommy's working" she said, her patience wearing thinner by the second.

"And a movie too, my Disney movies mommy, look you hafta' see" he said shoving the DVD box on her laptop, consequently hitting random buttons. Moving the box away, Haley looked up and saw everything she had been putting in for her patient gone.

Before she could try to restore the lost information, he began again, "…and then we got to go to the park and…"

"Dammit! Be quiet Jay! I said be quiet and I mean it. Can't you see mommy is working? Damn!" She bellowed out at the sensitive boy.

First his lip started to quiver, and then tears spilled down his rosy cheeks as he ran out of the room and into his fathers' arms. Nathan scooped him up in his arms and tried to hide his anger while comforting him. After telling him to go to his room, he walked into the office to find Haley still typing away.

"What's going on Haley?" he said trying to keep his temper in check.

"I'm busy Nathan, get out" she said bluntly.

"Really Hales? Hell no! I'm not four, you can't tell me what to do and expect me to listen."

Grabbing her arm, he pulled her out of the chair, and forced her into the garage, closing the door behind him.

"What the hell is wrong with you Haley? Making him cry like that?" he said not letting her pass him, when she tried to leave.

"What do you think? I'm so stressed Nathan. There's so much shit that I'm dealing with and…"

"Like what?" he interrupted "Huh? What is so bad, that it makes you not only ignore us all day, then go off on our fucking son?" There was only so much he could take. He knew this wasn't her, and he had to let _her_ know that.

"I'm..." she started, but ended up choking on her words.

"You're what Haley!" he encouraged.

"I'm pregnant Nathan!" she screamed as the tears finally made their appearance.

"What?" He clearly thought he'd heard her wrong.

"I said I'm pregnant" she whispered.

* * *

"_Just because I'm pregnant doesn't mean you can tell me what do to Nathan" Haley said to her husband climbing into his SUV outside of her doctor's office. They had just come from her 12th week check-up and were on the way to get Jay from preschool. _

_Nathan didn't smile or laugh at her statement, but sent her a grave look that proved he was not in a kidding mood. _

"_I still don't get why the hell the technician didn't say she wasn't gonna make it in. I really wanted to see the baby and make sure everything was fine."_

"_Babe, she was stuck behind an accident. We couldn't wait because we had to get Jay, so calm down. Dr. Lewis said I'm looking great and we'll come back in a couple days to get our ultrasound done. Stop worrying before you start to get wrinkles or something" She didn't want her husband to be as worried as he was, and she surely didn't want him to know how upset she was as well about not getting to see their baby._

"_But Haley, you're still spotting. You shouldn't be spotting like you are this far along, it's not normal Hales. I just want to make sure everything is fine. I know what the doctor said, but you can't blame me for being a little on edge."_

_Haley held his hand the rest of the car ride and once the family made it home, Nathan got out plates for the pizza they'd picked up from their favorite restaurant. Haley placed him in the high chair and they both laughed as the nearly three year old went for the pizza with determination. They'd gotten used to letting him handle his food on his own, and only with certain foods, did they take over and feed the toddler themselves. _

_Once they were done with dinner, Haley took it upon herself to bathe Jay, and when they tucked him into bed, both parents were eager to sleep as well. _

_Nathan hadn't paid much attention to Haley climbing out of the bed well after midnight to get her routine glass of water, but shortly after she laid down next to him, he'd been awaken by the cold and wet sheets. Reaching to his left, he clicked on the small lamp on his side of the bed, and pulled the sheets down only to see his wife's bottom surrounded with blood. _

"_Haley, baby wake up. Wake up" he said not fully comprehending what he was seeing.  
"What Nathan" she spoke groggily._

"_You're bleeding Hales. You're bleeding" _

_Looking down at the front of her cotton night pants, Haley saw the large red stain, then looked to where Nathan was and saw another covering their sheets. She shook her head in denial as a sob left her body before she completely broke down._

_Haley was unaware of what happened the remainder of the night, and wondered if it were possible to black out, but still be awake. She remembered sitting in the passenger seat of their car while Nathan reversed out of the parking lot. He had made it as far as their rental office when the car stopped and he went back to their previous parking space. She wasn't sure how long she sat in the car all of a sudden feeling cramps, but she vaguely remembered Nathan carrying her sleeping son out to the car and then apologizing for leaving him._

_At the hospital she sat in a white room, but anything anyone said to her went like the expression, in one ear and out the other. She remembered hearing words like, chromosomal abnormalities, miscarriage, and sorry, but she felt numb and did her best to focus on her husband. She wasn't sure how much she cried, or if she even had visitors. She did know that she'd gotten to the hospital on "Thursday night" and after some procedures was home Friday afternoon. She didn't see Jay again until Monday. She hadn't even wondered where he was and didn't know until he told her on his sleepover at Logan's house._

_Nathan had been her rock. No matter how much she cried, fought and purposely used her words to hurt him, he stayed by her side and refused to leave her alone. She was proud of herself when she'd awaken on Saturday morning, too early for anyone in their right mind, and held her crying husband. She knew he didn't mean to make anything about him, but she knew he'd lost their baby as well, not to mention he had already been so worried about the baby that day. _

"_Tell me what you're thinking Haley." Nathan had just put Jay down for bed, and joined his wife in their room. It had been three weeks since they'd lost the baby, and with Jay's birthday that weekend, they were still trying to cope with their loss while staying in good spirits for their son. Nathan's mom agreed to plan the boys' party, and Tonya was kind enough to host it at her house. _

"_I can't even think about possibly going through this ever again Nathan. Ever, I don't think I'm strong enough as it is so if I lose anoth…" she chocked on the words and reached over to grab his hands for support. "For now… no more. I don't think I could survive it"_

"_Okay… no more kids for now" As much as it hurt him to hear her say that, he knew he had to support his wife's decision._

* * *

"Are you sure?" he said moving closer to her.

"No, I mean I haven't been to the doctors, but last week I took a test and it came out positive."

She was obviously avoiding his gaze. The topic of more kids hadn't been brought up since their last discussion of "no more kids for now" and the fear sadly overpowered the excitement and possibilities.

"When was I going to find out?" he said looking down. This brought back memories that he didn't want to relive.

"I was going to tell you Nathan, I promise. I just got scared."

"Of my reaction?"

"No! Scared of being pregnant Nathan! Scared of losing another baby! Scared of being depressed again, shying away from Jay like I don't deserve him! I'm scared of it all. " she admitted crying.

Seeing his wives insecurities, he came and knelt in front of her. "I know how hard it was when we lost our baby Hales, it was the hardest thing we've ever gone through but we can't keep living in the past when it comes to our family. I can't guarantee that nothing will happen again, but I can promise you that no matter what I'll be there with you every single step of the way. Every doctor's appointment, every weird feeling, every craving you have, I'm there. You are a wonderful mother and what happened was not your fault Haley. You did everything right."

He hated to see her doubt herself like this.

"I trust you…it just brought back so many memories. I was such a different person after it happened. I can't lose another baby and lose myself as well. I can't do that to you and Jay."

"You know Hales, you know that you _never_ have to go through anything alone, and you're so much stronger baby. You're the strongest person I know and I believe it's time for us to add to our family.

"I'm so sorry Nathan, I should have just come to you. I trust you, I do. I want to believe that we'll all be fine because I could never raise two kids without you. I don't know what I'd do if I ever lost you." She buried her face in his neck, breathing in his scent.

Kissing her hair, he held her body closer to his. "You'll never have to find out. I love you Hales, so much, so don't you ever forget that"

"I won't. I love you too" she pulled back and kissed his lips, while he wiped the remaining tears from her cheeks.

"You want to go to the doctors? I'm sure we can get an appointment for some time this week."

They were now both sitting on the floor with Haley in between his legs and his arms wrapped around her from behind.

"Yea, but... I wanna talk about it first." She started to play with his fingers, twisting his wedding ring off, and sliding the oversized ring over her slender fingers.

"Okay, you first" he said with an edge of concern in his voice.

"I wasn't sure how you would feel about having another baby… we didn't plan this and with work and Jay, I just wasn't... I don't know I was just scared I guess"

He maneuvered her around so that he could see her big brown expressive eyes staring back into his blue ones. "Haley, even if I wasn't ready for another baby, you weren't going to get an abortion, and I'll never put my kids up for adoption. There's no way, I could ever be upset about you being pregnant. No way. We didn't expect Jay, and he turned out to be the best thing in my life, along with you. I love that damn kid Hales and I'll love any other babies we have. We're going to be okay Hales, we have to believe that."

"I hurt his feelings didn't I?" she asked now really concerned and aware of how she treated her son.

"Yea, he might now like you right now."

"I never wanted to hurt my children like that, especially when they're this young and taking everything to heart."

"Just tell him you're sorry, but next time you hurt my lil man's feelings like that, you're gonna be on the couch, and we're taking the big bed, and I love hearing you say _children_" Smirk never leaving his face.

"Thank you for loving us so much" her eyes clouded with tears and before she knew it, she was sobbing once again with her head buried in the crook of his neck. But these were different tears. "I really am so happy"

He squeezed her back and nodded in agreement, controlling his emotions. "Me too Hales, me too"

Haley leaned up and kissed his lips passionately before pulling back after a few minutes. She quickly kissed his lips one last time, then walked back into the house. He knew she was going to see Jay.

When she walked in the toddlers' _now_ Thomas the Train themed room, Jay was lying on the bed looking extremely sad, not to mention heartbroken.

He was holding a soft dark brown teddy bear closely to his chest. It was the bear that Nathan had brought to the hospital when he was born; his first present to his son. He loved the bear dearly, and usually never slept without it. The parents had recently started to wean the child off the bear, since Nathan found it "wussy" to have him clinging to a bear while growing up.

"Come here baby" she said taking a seat next to him on the bed. She lifted him in her arms and held him close to her as she rubbed his back, knowing it always soothed him.

"I'm so sorry baby. I wasn't being very nice, and I was wrong. Mommy's gonna try not to yell and say bad words anymore okay?"

She felt his head nod against her chest, and gave him an extra squeeze. "I love you baby, so much"

"I freakin' love you baby"

She could have sworn she was staring at her husband in that very moment. "Your father is brainwashing you" She said laughing. "No he not!" he said standing up next to her on the bed, now towering over her. Now he really looked like his father, height and all. After correcting him, she looked up to see Nathan standing in the doorway.

"I don't' know about you two, but I'm starving."

"Me too daddy!" he said jumping from his place on the bed and into his arms.

Taking a seat beside Haley, Nathan could help but think about the baby that could possibly be growing right now. "When is Drew coming back with Auntie Brooke and Uncle Lucas?" he said looking between both parents.

They knew he missed the three of them very much. It was hard on both boys; they were best friends. "Well they've still got a few more states to go to, and it should only be for a couple more months. I'll tell you what, how about we call them tonight after dinner that way you can't talk to them"

Just two days later, Haley and Nathan had the confirmation of her pregnancy and discovered she was already five weeks along. They were both pretty surprised that they hadn't realized it earlier, but with Haley's irregular cycle, they should have known better. The same happened when she was pregnant with Jason. The doctor spent a lot of time going over every question they had and could see the relief on their face when he announced that the pregnancy was not high risk. Haley's fears were settled and after a long visit, the couple was back home with their son.

They weren't sure at first if they should tell anyone yet, the fear although settled, still lingered deep down. Together they decided that they would tell Nathan and Haley's parents, Brooke and Lucas, Tonya and Matt and Haley's co-workers their news. Where Jay was concerned, Haley finally decided to just tell him whenever he became curious about her growing stomach and Nathan agreed.

They were pregnant again, and couldn't wait to see where this new road would take them.

* * *

**AN: I know this chapter had some weight to it and I did much research to not have anything just falsified. I've experienced, with others, not myself miscarriage and how it affects a family and the parents. You have my sincere apologies if you've been through this tragedy, and I pray you've had much support and love through it. Please review and give me your thoughts. Thanks so much for reading!**

**Jennifer**


	9. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7:**

**Hi guys, back again with another update… a powerful one i'd like to think Thanks to those that left a review and shared their thoughts! They always make me move faster so I appreciate it. Looking back, I realized that I mentioned in one chapter that Jay's eyes were blue, but that was a mistake, they were blue as a baby, but are actually brown like Haley's eyes.. killer right? As much as I love Nathan's eyes, a kid with Haley's eyes to Nathan is torture/golden/heart-breaking so although in pretty much every other way he's a carbon copy of Nathan, his eyes belong to Hales. **

**Read and Enjoy! I own NOTHING!**

* * *

Nathan looked down at his wife that lay in his arms, and smiled at her relaxed position. He'd just finish telling her once again about the moment he'd realized he was in love with her. She'd heard the story from his mouth countless times, but she loved every second of it.

"I love that story" she said exhaling and relaxing deeper into his embrace.

"Well are you finally going to tell me yours now?"

She decided to play dumb, hoping that he would _once again_ let it go. "Tell you my what?"

Removing himself from behind her, he watched as she re-situated herself, and then laid his head in her lap. She played with his hair running her hands through it.

"Nathan, the moment I realized that I loved you wasn't as grand or beautiful as yours…Most people would even call it stupid, and immature."

"Try me" was his only response.

"You asked for it" She laid her head back on the pillows that encased her bed, and slowly began to play back that day in her head.

* * *

_It had been summer break, and Haley was happy to just relax, and get away from her busy school schedule. Her mother and aunt had decided to go away for the weekend, and left her to look after her twelve year old cousin. They'd basically grown up together as sisters, and she adored the little girl so it wasn't a big deal to her. What was a big deal is that Nathan had promised to call her over her aunts' house, and she couldn't wait to hear from him! Their relationship, or whatever you'd call it was a big deal to her and they'd been talking for months now. Although with his job it was common to not hear from him for days, Haley knew she'd go crazy without speaking to him, especially with nothing to make the time go faster._

_She had been there for two weeks, and knew that things could get busy, and she would have to be patient to hear from him. Hearing the house phone ring, she ran to it, and was disappointed, but somewhat happy to see Brooke's cell phone number on the caller ID._

"_Hey Brooke"_

"_**Hey Hales… what's going on, how's everything back at home? How's Natalie?"**_

"_She's good, glad I'm home for a while and we have the weekend with just us so she loves it.…. But I haven't heard from Nathan yet. I can't wait to talk to him."_

_She knew to walk on eggshells when talking about Nathan to Brooke. She wasn't their biggest fan, mainly because she didn't want Haley to get hurt. She worried about how close and attached Haley had allowed herself to get to him already. He would break her heart, and she knew it._

"_**Well, I'm glad you can spend time with Nat and focus on her… when was he supposed to call you?"**_

"_He said he'd call whenever he could…. that was like a couple days before I left campus.. I did get an email from him last week though" She paused, knowing that Brooke would scold her for believing anything that he said. "But he'll call, so I'm not worried"_

"_**Haley, I'm saying this because I don't want to see you get hurt… you love him… and you don't even know if he feels the same way"**_

"_I do not love him Brooke, and why do you always doubt that I can take care of myself? I know what I'm doing!" She was upset at her friends 'advice'._

"_**I'm just looking out for you! He's so far away, and I know you're gonna get hurt Haley! Who knows what he's doing hundreds of miles away? You're setting yourself up for something that can turn out really bad"**_

"_I can't talk to you right now" She said hanging up the phone._

_Taking Natalie out for dinner and a movie was a great distraction that night and it was definitely bed time for the young blonde when they got in. Haley went down to the basement that was always considered her room, and called his phone again._

"_Hey Nathan.. it's me, Haley.. .just wondering how you're doing and making sure you're ok.. umm give me a call when you can" She hated leaving messages._

_Turning on the TV, she felt the urge to cry. Deciding that there wasn't anything interesting on, she went to boot up the computer that stay in the basement and opened the homepage of . She laughed at the headline that read: Backstreet Boy's are indeed BACK with new hit "Incomplete". Clicking on the link, she was taken directly to the music video, and listen intently._

_Empty spaces fill me up with holes_

_Distant faces with no place left to go_

_Without you within me I can't find no rest, _

_Where I'm going, is anybody's guess_

_I tried to go on like I never knew you_

_I'm awake, but my world is half asleep_

_I pray, for this heart to be unbroken_

_But without you all I'm going to be is_

_Incomplete_

_Voices tell me I should carry on_

_But I am swimming in an ocean all alone_

_Baby, my baby, it's written on your face_

_You still wonder if we made a big mistake_

_I tried to go on like I never knew you_

_I'm awake, but my world is half asleep_

_I pray, for this heart to be unbroken_

_But without you all I'm going to be is_

_Incomplete_

_I don't mean to drag it on_

_But I can't seem to let you go_

_I don't wanna make you face this world alone_

_I wanna let you go (alone)_

_I tried to go on like I never knew you_

_I'm awake, but my world is half asleep_

_I pray, for this heart to be unbroken_

_But without you all I'm going to be is_

_Incomplete_

_Haley couldn't believe the words that she heard come from the speakers on the computer. Brooke was right….She did love Nathan! Everything in that song was everything that she was feeling for him. She loved Nathan Scott….. But how did he feel about her?_

* * *

Haley looked down at Nathan with tears evident in her soft smile. "I was so confused, and hurt, but I knew after hearing that….that I loved you so much. It was such a girly moment, and after not hearing from you that whole week, I was convinced that you hated me and that I was just a game to you."

"I remember everything being so different after I had finally talked to you. I had been out in the field that whole week, and wasn't allowed to bring my phone with me, but I had checked my messages, and you sounded so different and worried about me." He brought her face down to his and kissed her.

"Still think my story is better than that? Mine seems silly compared to that Hales. But I will kill Brooke for putting you through all that and doubting me!" he said gaining a laugh from her.

"Hey, she was just looking out for me. I was mad, but I loved her for it. She was always there when I was missing you."

"I know you've been through a lot waiting for me, and I'm sorry for all the hurt I must have caused you"

"Well I'll tell you now that it was all worth it. Look at us now, we're living the life, and everything's gonna be alright."

* * *

_Life belongs to the living, and he who lives must be prepared for changes- Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe_

* * *

Haley was now a full twenty-five weeks pregnant, and you one could finally tell that she was toting around a round baby bump. She smiled as she felt Jay's little foot softly rub against her growing abdomen while she pushed the grocery cart he sat in.

"Where's daddy at?" he said looking around the grocery store.

"He's getting some chips, and juice"

"Oooh! Can we get some hot cheetos like last time?"

"Of course we can… you are your fathers' child."

"Can I get a lunchable Mommy?"

"Yea, you can get two if you want, but only two Jay" she warned him. Her son would live off of lunchables if she allowed him to.

"You have one spoiled son there Haley Scott" Nathan said sneaking up behind her.

"Uh! He is _not_ spoiled Nathan!" she said with a scowl covering her face.

"Yea sure he isn't. But it's okay Hales, I just can't wait to see what you do to our daughter. I'm gonna have to strangle her daily!"

"Just because I allow him to get some things from the store when we go, does not mean he's spoiled" She wasn't angry, because she simply knew that he liked to rile her up when she was pregnant. It would also send their little 'bun in the oven' stirring and start up the flutters that only she could feel.

Kissing her cheek, Nathan walked away, smiling in victory. She always scolded their 'bun' when she started moving. _And boy did she move._ Although Nathan walked away smiling, she knew under that he was really upset that he hadn't been able to feel the baby kick yet.

Jay's big blue expressive eyes followed his fathers form down the aisle until he could not longer see him, and then turned his attention back to his mother.

"Mommy, can we get some popsicles?" he asked purposely opening his brown eyes as far as they could go.

"Not gonna work kiddo, you have enough junk food already Jay, so no ice cream" It was like looking into a mirror, but he couldn't play her every time he wanted something.

"But, I want ice cream mommy, I want it now" he said testing his limits.

Before Haley could say anything, Nathan reappeared and added more food to the cart.

"Daddy, can we get some ice cream please" Little did he know, Nathan had heard the exchange between his wife and his clever son.

"Jay, I just heard mommy tell you no, so listen to her and stop talking back you understand?"

"But I just really want ice cream" He then began a full fledge crying fit and started to draw attention to the small family.

Haley looked at him completely bewildered. She'd never seen him throw a fit in public, and had to make sure this would be his first and last time. "Jay, you're asking for it buddy, you need to stop right now or I'm gonna get you out of that cart and spank you right here in this store."

Ignoring his mothers warning, he continued to cry and then started to kick his feet. He accidentally kicked her in the stomach, and although it wasn't too hard, it shouldn't have happened while he was throwing a tantrum.

Before Haley could do anything, Nathan had him out of the cart and gave him two slaps on his jean clad bottom. It wasn't that he really wounded him, but he knew when daddy popped him, that he was in big trouble. Picking him back up, he sat him in the cart, while the young boy's head hung low.

"Don't you ever kick your mommy again, do you understand? And no more crying and throwing fits when me and mommy tell you no, or else you're gonna be in even more trouble."

"Yes" he was still crying from being popped and they knew his feelings were hurt more than anything.

"Now say you're sorry to mommy"

After hearing her son's sorrowful, stuttered apology, she tilted his chin up to look her in the eyes.

"It's not good to kick mommy and throw fits when you can't get what you want. Don't do it again okay? It makes me sad to see you not listening Jay" Nodding his head, he slipped his two fingers in his mouth, and leaned his head on her chest completely embarrassed.

"Just like I said, spoiled" He said throwing his arm around her shoulder with a smirk on his face.

"He's gonna be mad at you daddy! You beat him" she whispered poking him in his hard stomach.

"Whatever he kicked you. I was ready to really spank him, but I knew it was an accident" He hated to even think about spanking Jay and as far as he knew his son had received about three spankings his entire life. He wasn't a bad kid by any means, but those few times, a time out wouldn't work and it was usually something big that he'd done although he knew better of it.

Haley shifted from foot to foot, prepared to change the subject. "Uuuh! Are we almost done, my feet are killing me, and I just wanna go home."

"Almost done babe, you want yogurt for you and Jay?" He said preparing to pick up a few packs.

"Yea anything without banana… hmmmm, baby I'm hungry"

"Why do you think we're here, you ate everything at home. Greedy ass" he joked.

Her mouth fell open, and tears immediately filled her eyes before she walked away.

"I'm just kidding Hales, you know that" he said catching up to her with their son and cart.

"You're an ass is what you are" She mumbled out. "I'm pregnant Nathan, and your daughter is the one making me eat so much"

"Son" he corrected.

"You've been calling _it _ a girl all morning" she said squinting at her husband.

"Yea but since we don't know yet since a certain someone wanted to be surprised, only to change her mind recently, we need to change up what we say. I'll call baby a girl, and you say boy. Gotta mix it up Hales"

She decided to ignore his stupid conclusion and disregard his jab at her indecisiveness. "We're gonna get a girl I bet. We can find out for sure next appointment tomorrow."

"Whatever you say Hales"

He ran back and gathered up the yogurt from the shelf and came back to empty it into the cart. As they walked down the juice aisle, he looked down when he felt a little finger poking him in the back. He almost laughed when he saw the little smirk that she wore on her face. It was almost as if she were trying to imitate him. _It was too damn cute_

"Can I help you Mrs. Scott?"

"Kiss please" she asked sweetly and innocently.

"What's with this kiss on demand thing?" he always wondered where his wife came up with the crazy things that came out of her mouth.

"What? I like it, ask and you shall receive. Kiss Please" she instructed once again.

Bending down to her level, he looked deep into her eyes, and softly kissed the corner of her mouth. _Man he loved her_.

* * *

Haley and Nathan arrived home much later that evening after sitting through horrible traffic. Seeing as though they had no idea why people were acting so bizarre, the first thing Haley did when they got home was turn on the news. To her surprise, every channel that she turned to was broadcasting a live supposed terrorist attack that struck Pennsylvania.

Haley immediately felt her heart drop into her stomach. As bad as she wanted to look at her husband for comfort, she couldn't tear her eyes away from the screen.

"Mommy can you do this please?" he asked, wanting assistance in unbuttoning his jacket. Seeing that his wife was stuck on the television, he went over and maneuvered Jay's jacket off, while still keeping a close eye on the news.

"Turn it up" They both watched for a few more minutes, then watched as they showed some of the buildings that were still being cleared out. A building that Haley recognized easily.

"Phone" she demanded. Not that her husband understood it. "I need the phone. I have to call and see if she's okay, Taylor works near there, give me the phone" he could tell she was worried for her sister, by her outrageous tone.

After dialing for about ten minutes, and not getting through to anyone, she hung up the phone and went to sit next to Nathan.

Jay was very confused as to why his parents were upset about the tv, and couldn't understand what was going on. He just knew they were sad and tried to sit as still as possible as to not upset them more.

Haley jumped immediately when the phone started ringing and quickly had it to her ear. The relief that she was searching for was not granted when the male on the other end asked for 'Mr. Nathan Royal Scott'. After handing Jay off to his wife, Nathan took the call in the master bedroom.

After about ten minutes of silence, Haley began to hear moving and shuffling in her room where Nathan had gone. After changing the channel to cartoons for Jay, she made her way back into her bedroom only to be surprised.

On their king size bed, laid her husbands' cameo bag, slowly being filled with underclothes, and his uniforms that she hadn't seen in weeks.

Being in the Army Reserve, Nathan was required to take a weekend trip every month for training plus an additional two weeks every year for Field Training Exercise. His job as a Construction Equipment Repairer gave him the skills he needed to own the shop he had now, and his training exercises he had to attend yearly weren't in any way harmful, leaving Haley worry free on those visits. She was used to those trips being planned at the beginning of each year, so him packing his belongings at this moment sent fear through her body.

_Just Breath!_

_Don't Hyperventilate!_

Haley drew in a long deep breath, and when she let it out, a sob followed directly behind it. Nathan obviously heard her, but he wanted to do as much packing as possible knowing he had to be fast. He moved swiftly and then changed into one of his training uniforms. When he looked over at her, it made him sick to see her silent tears falling down her cheeks.

"Who was that" she dared to ask.

"It was my Commanding Officer, I have to be at Fort Hood tonight, and start training in the morning" He wanted so bad to shield her from all the pain he knew she'd be feeling, but there was nothing that he could do about this. He had _orders_.

"Why so soon?" she asked as she started to pace the floor.

Nathan sighed knowing this would be hard. He knew it would be even worse seeing as though she was pregnant, and _very_ hormonal. "Haley, you saw what happened; I knew they'd call. And I_ have_ to go." He tried his best to be reasonable and understanding. "You know how this works by now Haley, and as of now you have nothing to be afraid of. Active Duty's been called up, so Reserve goes to fill in for them. There's such a small chance that I could be sent over there Hales. My orders are to report there for now, that's all I can give you."

"Why can't you just go to Randolph, it's near downtown" her breaths were coming out heavier as she asked questions she already knew the answer to.

"Haley, you know Randolph's an Air Force base, you have to calm down."

"But I don't want you to go, who's gonna take care of me and Jay while you're gone? And our daughter? What about the appointment tomorrow? What If something happens to you Nathan? I don't want them to grow up without a dad, and I couldn't handle that. Please don't go."

"Where's daddy going?" Jay asked from his place in the doorway. He had tears in his eyes, sensing that something bad was about to happen. His mommy was crying, and his dad had tears in his eyes.

"Buddy, daddy has to go away to work for a while" He figured he'd try to keep things simple with Jay.

"At the car shop?" was his innocent response.

"No, not there buddy, it's someplace that kind of far away."

"When will you come back?" He did not like this conversation at all. No wonder his mommy was sad.

"I don't know Jay. I hope I can come back soon, but they're not sure yet."

"Is that why mommy's crying?"

"Yes, she doesn't want me to leave"

"I don't either" Little tears spilled down his cheeks just as they had on his mothers.

Leaning forward, Nathan scooped him up in his arms hugging him, then allowed Haley into the embrace and held his crying family. It wasn't long until Jay's need for an afternoon break caught up to him and the small boy dozed off on his fathers' shoulder.

"I need to be leaving soon, Hood's about three hours away. I need to call a cab" He added thinking aloud.

"A cab? Why? We can drive down there together" she said as if it was the most obvious thing ever.

Looking into his wife's searching eyes, he groaned in frustration. He laid Jay on their bed, and pulled her into the walk in closet. "I don't want you to come" Seeing the questioning and disapproving look on her face, he continued, "I don't want to see you crying for me, It's already hard enough leaving you. Then you'd have to drive back alone crying for nearly three hours, probably longer if you remember traffic today. You could get into an accident Haley, and I'm not willing to take that chance are you?." He whispered out in all seriousness.

"What about Jay? You could never see him again Nathan, or this baby. What would I tell him?" She would fight to the end, and win this battle no matter what she had to say to him.

"I don't want you driving back alone" he said making sure she knew his biggest concern was her safety.

"Fine, we'll take your car, so you can have it there, then me and Jay can catch a cab back" She had it all worked out. Tonya had told her about the time when Matt was called away and she had to leave him that there were companies that offered services to drive families back home free of charge to show their support of the troops.

"Jay? I don't want him there! Don't make me say goodbye to him too." He was pleading with her at this point. He knew what he could possibly be getting himself into and the thought of never seeing his little boy again brought blinding pain to his entire body.

"So you just want to leave him without saying goodbye at all? What would that do to _him_?" Don't you want to spend as much time with him as you can? The ride will put him to sleep, but at least you'll be able to hold him and tell him you love him" She could see that she was getting through to him, and she was glad.

Looking into the room where he son lay asleep, he knew she was right. He could never just leave him so suddenly. "We need to leave now, I'll get Jay ready"

All his stuff was packed in the SUV and as a result of the horrible traffic, the two hour-forty minute drive took nearly four hours. Haley rested her head against him, every few seconds, softly demanding a kiss from her husband.

When they dropped his stuff in the room he'd been assigned to, and it was time for Haley and Jay to leave, they all broke down. The both figured that somehow Jay knew what was going on because he was wide awake and clinging to his fathers' neck while he hugged him goodbye.

Haley hated to see Nathan cry, knowing that he only did it when he was really scared, sad, or happy like when they got married and when Jay was born. When Haley's cab pulled up, they were very grateful for the driver waiting patiently.

This had been his third run up there today, and being in the army himself, he'd remembered how hard it was to say goodbye to his family, and knew this was his duty now.

"You know I love you Hales, so much"

"I know, and I love you too, so make sure you come back to us soon"

"I love Jay and this baby so much, and I will do whatever I can to come home soon" He knew there were no other promises he could really make her.

"Jay, say bye to daddy, and tell him you love him baby"

"I love you daddy" he hugged Nathan's neck tightly, simply knowing that he didn't want his daddy to be 'working' for any long period of time.

"Aww man, I love you too buddy, and don't forget that ok. You're my buddy, and your daddy loves you no matter what. Make sure you be good for mommy, and help her ok. You're a big boy now, so make sure you clean your room, and lift up your seat when you use the bathroom okay?" he asked tickling his stomach while saying the last part.

"I know daddy, I know!" he said giggling.

Nathan, himself laughed and hugged him tightly to his chest, and kissed his head numerous amounts of times.

Pulling Haley towards him, he nuzzled his face into her neck memorizing her smell, while Jay still lay against his shoulder. Pulling back, he lifted her chin up and looked her square in the eyes. As soon as he moved his head towards hers, she met his lips with hers and gently tugged on his bottom lip, making him open up and allowing her tongue to slip in his mouth. After that invite, he was quick to tilt her head back in order to gain better access to her mouth.

The only sad thing was that this felt like a goodbye.

"This isn't goodbye Hales. I could be home in two weeks for all we know."

"It feels like goodbye." She said with tears pouring down her red cheeks. Although she knew his comment was true, she also knew that it was unlikely and that instead of two weeks it could be two months.

"I love you…..don't ever forget that…. Ever. I love you so much."

"I love you too Nathan" was her simple reply.

"You guys gotta get going" He was grateful to the driver, but he knew that he had to get going.

"Yea I know, come on Jay." She said taking him from her husband.

"Don't carry him too much, and call someone if you need help. Don't try to be superwomen Hales."

"I won't Nathan, don't worry so much" she said clearly brushing his comment off.

"Promise me. Promise me you'll call someone if you need help."

"I promise"

"I want you to call me when you get home, or text me or something to let me know you're okay."

"I promise I will." she smiled when he bent down and kissed her stomach. He looked up and saw the look in Haley's eyes that she got every time their baby moved. He held his hand on her stomach silently willing the baby to kick, wishing he could experience that moment before they had to be separated.

"Bye baby, I love you"

"Love you too. Bye." One more kiss and she was in the cab.

Getting into the cab was the hardest thing she thought she'd have to do. She strapped Jay into the Hybrid Booster Seat they'd brought, and buckled herself in as well. She watched as Nathan slowly walked backwards with his hands in his pockets trying to keep his emotions together. She sent one last wave his way before grabbing a few tissues from her purse. Leaning towards Jay, she grabbed his hand and rubbed her thumb along the smooth skin praying that her family would be back together soon.

* * *

**AN: So? Thoughts please! Everything in this chapter, just like every chapter comes from my knowledge, as well as a great amount of research as to not include any false information. I remember my sister barely showed with her second child and you honestly couldn't tell she was pregnant until her 7th month! And also low weight can cause baby to not "kick" and for the outside world to feel baby. Anywho share those thoughts please!**

**Jennifer! **


	10. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8:**

**I hope that you guys have enjoyed the pass few chapters. This one picks up the same night that Haley went back home from leaving Nathan at the base Another thing…. I said in Chapter 7 that Haley was a week away from her 6th month mark, but I have no idea how I messed up the timing in here. It was perfect, but it got a little screwed up. When Nathan leaves-now- it is Beginning October and she's 26 weeks along. So she's six and a half months along! Thanks and sorry again!**

* * *

_BAM!_

_BAM! BAM!_

_BAM! BAM! BAM!_

After getting checked into his room, and finding out his schedule for tomorrow, Nathan had made his way to the gym, and over to the punching bag. He really didn't realize how much this was hurting him, until he found himself crying after they had left. Since he and Haley had gotten married nearly six years ago, they hadn't been apart for longer than a few days, and the same with Jay. Even when he had his two weeks trainings, Haley and Jay would tag along and stay with his parents and he was able to see them at least two nights a week. Since his boy was born, the proud father hadn't been away from him for longer than a couple days, and that was when he was too young to remember really.

He knew that the drive back for them would be longer than coming up, so after about an hour and a half, he made his way back to his room. After texting Haley to let her know that he'd call her once he was out of the shower, Nathan got in, and was out within eight minutes.

He had no reason to stay in long seeing as though this shower was_ nothing_ like the one he shared at home with his wife. The saying was true; you never realize how much you'll miss something until it's gone. He would give anything to have his son come running in without knocking just because he wanted to play. Or to hear Haley yelling at him for using all the hot water again.

Once he was dried off and dressed, he stretched out on the bed and dialed his home number. After letting it ring a few times, he hung up, and turned to the clock on his nightstand. _Oooh… it's Jay's bedtime_, he thought to himself. As much as Jay might need his momma tonight, Nathan really hoped that she didn't cave in and allow him to sleep with her. Their son was _too much_ of a wild sleeper to share a bed with his pregnant mother.

After a few minutes of sitting patiently, Nathan's cell phone began to vibrate and ring on the nightstand beside his bed. Knowing that ringer was the one chosen for 'home', he picked it up quickly, picturing his family on the other end.

"Hello"

"Hey, sorry I didn't answer before. I was getting Jay to sleep." She knew he'd be upset that he was in bed with her, but how could he blame her. Their son was the closes thing that she had to her husband at the moment, next to the baby growing inside her.

"Where is he?" he didn't know why he asked seeing as though he already knew the answer.

"In our bed with me. But you don't have to worry I put him near the bottom, so I'm fine."

Hearing her 'innocent' voice instantly allowed him to picture the look on his wife's face at that moment. _Damn he missed her._

"How was the ride back" he asked changing the subject, "did he cry?"

"Not much, but some. He was better than I was" she said in all honesty.

"Don't cry anymore Hales" he hated knowing that she was sad and hurt. There was literally nothing that he could really do.

"How were you? I'm not the only one away from someone I love."

_Haley knew this had to be hard on her husband._

_Her best friend. _

_He was her best friend, and they had been torn apart for who knows how long._

_He was also taken away from their family. _

_Their kids._

_His kids. _

_His babies._

"I found a punching bag" was his simple, yet honest reply. "How's my baby doing?"

Hearing his wife barely get out that 'she' was okay, was enough to make Nathan worry.

"What's wrong Hales, and don't lie. No lies remember"

Haley was quiet for a minute dreading the happy, but sad news she had for her husband.

"Throughout the car ride, she was calm and sleeping, but as soon as we got home, she kicked. And it wasn't just the flutters only _I_ can feel, Jay felt her kicking."

Ironically, she laughed quietly to herself. They had to stop calling the baby a girl until they found out for sure that it was a girl. There was probably a little boy in there having identity issues already.

"She kicked? Did it hurt?" He was so sad that he missed it.

_He had promised he wouldn't miss anything_

_He'd been waiting for the very moment when his baby kicked. He and Haley had been very concerned as to why he couldn't feel the baby kicking yet. With Jay he felt him kick as early as nineteen weeks. When they finally voiced their fears with Haley's doctor, she simply told them, the baby's weight was a little low, and their little offspring simply wasn't strong enough to kick that hard yet and not to worry. It was obviously normal. Another low weight baby had the parents on alert, but they promised to stay in good spirits about this baby's health as opposed to how scared they'd been with Jay._

"Not really, it felt nice"

"I wish I was there to feel it"

_She could hear the disappointment in his voice. _

_Disappointment in himself._

"Just make sure you can come back home and be with us, we miss you so much already"

_He didn't even need to say that he missed them. She could tell by his silence. Her husband is what most people call the strong silent type. He guarded himself so well around most people, and was always the designated 'strong one'. Even sometimes around her._

"So what's your schedule like? Do you know yet?" She wanted to desperately change the topic before they both ended up crying together on the phone.

_It wouldn't have been the fist time._

"Yea, I do. We got PT (physical training) at four-thirty, come back, start in on some brake actuators and starter motors for a few hours, get my hands dirty. Five-thirty we take some test on paper to see who's up to speed. Then start the day all over again with PT again at for-thirty, then whatever until we get assignments. What about you baby?"

_He knew what she had planned for the day, but he wanted to hear her say it.  
_

"Taking Jay to school, then stopping pass Tanya's maybe and talk to her. Laundry, pick Jay up, hopefully talk to you, and that's about it."

"What else Hales?" he urged.

"I don't wanna find out without you Nathan" she wiped the lone tear that fell down her cheek, and buried her face in her free hand.

"Baby, don't cry, you need to go to your appointment. We gotta make sure everything's okay with the baby." He knew they couldn't live in their pretend world any longer regarding their baby's health, especially with him gone, and her alone. "Hales, they're gonna check her weight again, and make sure your fluids aren't low. You know how important these checkups are, no running scared, you're going."

"But I don't want to find out the sex without you knowing at the same time. I want you here so bad." There were other things that she was afraid of finding out without Nathan present. The glucose reading was especially frightening for Haley. Her mother had gestational diabetes with her siblings and although she hadn't had it while pregnant with Jay, it was a big fear for her.

"Well how about you have the doctor write it down and then when I talk to you tomorrow night, we can both find out when you read it off to me?"

_He knew that was a long shot, but he prayed his wife would agree. They always went to their appointments making sure their babies were growing strong and healthy._

Hearing her sniffing, and sighing he could tell that he had gotten through to her. "Okay, that sounds good" After a few minutes of getting herself together she continued. "I can't believe we get to find out the sex tomorrow"

"Yea, but you know what I just realized?" he asked in all seriousness.

He waited a minute before he continued. "This is the first time I've slept alone in years. I've always had you, or Jay, or the both of you next to me." She could hear the emotions building in her husbands' voice. "So that means no holding you while you sleep, or helping you tuck Jay in, talking to the baby and rubbing your stomach while you fall asleep. FUCK! I don't know if I can be here Hales. I'm not _that guy _anymore! I'm not strong enough for that."

Haley had been waiting for this reaction. She'd witnessed his resentment of the army when he'd have to leave her every Sunday afternoon in San Antonio years ago. As much as he'd wanted to get out, you couldn't until you were released. She'd remembered one particular visit when she'd been sick and he'd taken care of her. He'd called in to tell his commanding officer that his fiancé was sick, and really needed him, but was immediately denied extra time off.

He'd punched a hole in her wall that day out of rage, before breaking down and crying while he held her. As much as he used to love the Army, it was slowly becoming a puppet master, and Nathan Scott was the puppet.

_The unhappy puppet._

"So PT at four-thirty? Just like when we first started talking." She said into the phone.

"You remember all those years ago?" he asked surprised.

"Every single detail. Like the first time you called me, you made fun of me."

He laughed out loud, remembering that conversation. "Why, what did you say?"

"Nathan, you know what I said" she said clearly not wanting to repeat it.

"But I still want to hear you say it" he loves to tease her.

"Fine. Hi Nathan, this is Haley, well… you know from that night in San Antonio. Anyway, I know you're on your way to jump school and I hope that you have a really good flight. I umm, just wanted to talk to you… I don't know. I just really wanted to hear your voice, and know your voice. That might sound dumb and really weird and if it is then I'm sorry, but anyway, just call me back on this number. Bye Nathan."

"You just wanted to hear my voice"

"And you called me"

"I love you so much Hales"

"I love you too Nathan"

"Thanks for the distraction Mrs. Scott."

_Wasn't his wife amazing?_

"Anytime. You want to go to bed? You gotta get used to getting up that early again."

"I should be fine. I doubt I'll be able to sleep without hearing you snore and holding you."

"I do NOT snore Nathan Royal Scott!"

"Nathan Royal Scott!" He mimicked her. "I love it when you talk dirty Hales!" he said teasing her.

"Whatever you perv" she said enjoying the fact that he was laughing once again.

"But you love me though right? Even though I have perverted, dirty thoughts about you, every hour of the day? Even though I'm gone once again, and you're there alone taking care of Jay while you're pregnant? Even though neither of us has any idea on when I'll be able to come home? You still love me right?" he asked in all earnestness, which nearly brought tears to his wife's eyes.

"Always and Forever Nathan. I love you so much, and it's my hormones that are making me cry so much, so don't pay any attention to me" she said wiping at the tears on her face.

"No yodes Hales"

He knew he'd get a laugh out of her from that.

"I won't cry, but baby, I told you to stop trying to talk in Spanish to me. It's just not your thing. Only Jay Hernandez can say that and sound sexy. Or at least someone that can actually speak Spanish."

"Whatever Haley. Do you want to go to bed; you've had a long day."

_He knew how tired his wife could get when she was pregnant.  
_

"I'm okay, not tired you all"

"Yet you say all this while you're yawning. You're a terrible liar Hales."

Suddenly her mood changed as she felt the small kicks from inside her. "Only three more months left" her delicate tone made him think as well.

"I'm sorry Haley."

_She of course didn't know what for, but was very curious._

"Not being there with you and Jay to put up the tree, or to finish Christmas shopping, not to mention that you're getting close to your due date. Everything Hales."

"But it's not your fault, you have orders to stay"

"Well… if I'm not.."

"Don't" she interrupted him "Don't say it, you'll be here."

"Haley if I'm _not_ there for Christmas, I already got you and Jay's stuff. But for you to see the baby's you'll have to have to wait until Christmas Day"

"I just want you for Christmas, you know that"

After agreeing with her, Nathan looked at the clock on his nightstand and told her to get some rest.

"I love you. Give Jay a kiss for me. I'll talk to you once I'm done with PT tomorrow"

"I love you too, and I will. Good night."

"Night"

* * *

**Hey guys! Now be honest with me on this review. To me it dragged on longer than I normally would've made it, but I could see the situation of being separated like that and purposely dragging the conversation on just to talk to that person. Kinda felt right, and didn't need to be rushed. Hope you enjoyed it I had a name originally picked out for their child, but am re-thinking and coming up with a new one!**


	11. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

**Thank you to everyone who's added this story to their alerts and have reviewed! A BIG shout out to Lexie-Rae for your awesome reviews that pushed me to update so soon today! Hope you guys enjoy this chapter, I really think you will **

One week with the man of the house gone seemed to really make a mess of the Scott household. Haley didn't know the strain of doing everything alone, and how stressful it would be.

Putting aside her own desires of needing her husband around, it broke Haley's heart to hear her son cry for his father, or ask multiple times throughout the day when he was coming home. She was running herself ragged trying to keep up with and take care of Jay on top of being pregnant and very hormonal.

Often, her day ended with tucking Jay into his bed, straightening up the house, throwing a load of laundry in and crying herself to sleep. Sometimes it was hard to decide whether her tears came from missing her husband, being so stressed, or her hormones.

Either way, she didn't like it.

She felt so alone, and neglected.

Nathan had called her Sunday afternoon telling her of his weekly field run. The men would be out in the field all week long, and weren't allowed contact with anyone while there. It was now Tuesday evening, and Haley was definitely having withdrawals.

Before exiting the kitchen, she tossed the sponge into the empty sink, and flicked the light off then made her way into her sleeping sons' room. She fixed his blanket around him and smiled at the light snore that came from his little button nose. Reaching down, she brushed his hair from his forehead and kissed the boys lips before walking out and nearly closing the door.

The trip back to her room was interrupted when she heard a knock at the front door. Her first thought was to ignore it, but when the knocking persisted, she had no choice.

_Are you kidding me, who could be at my door this late?_

The anger was evident in her eyes, when she swung the door open, but was instantly replaced with shock as she stared at her two best friends. The male holding her nephew.

_Thank you God!_

_My family is home._

_At least part of it._

She launched herself at Brooke and before she could stop them, her hormones took over, and she began to sob.

"oh Hales" Brooke looked to Lucas and knew they made the right decision to come back early.

When they had received the phone call from Nathan saying that he had been called on duty, the two instantly knew they had to get home. As exciting and thrilling traveling had been, they were both ready to come back home to their family.

Especially now with Haley and Jay alone.

With her arms still around her sister-in-law, Brooke walked them back into the living room and onto the couch. Maneuvering her coat off, she leaned back on the arm of the couch allowing Haley to lay her head in her lap while she cried.

Lucas took off down the hall undressing Drew the entire way. Traveling these past few months had made the child into a heavy, deep sleeper. Once he was down to his thermal pants and undershirt, Lucas went into his nephews' room and deposited him on the bed next to his cousin. Quickly kissing his cheek, he walked out of the room and went to drop his and Brooke's overnight bags into the guest room.

After Haley had worn herself out crying, she sat up and brought Brooke in for a warm hug. She had missed her friend so much. When she felt a tap on her shoulder, she turned and saw Lucas standing there with a tall glass of ice cold water, just how she liked it. Grabbing the glass of water, Haley immediately sat it on the table, and pulled Lucas towards her in a bone crushing hug. "Ever leave us like that again, for that long Luke, and I swear I will kill you"

"I missed you too Hales" Haley smiled when Lucas jumped back after feeling the sharp kicks coming from the pregnant woman's stomach.

"I know right! Isn't she amazing" she said revealing the sex of the baby to her aunt and uncle.

"Wow, a girl. I can't believe you're having a little girl Haley. And she's a kicker" he let his hand rest on her stomach and grimaced at the rough blows he felt. "And that _doesn't_ hurt you?"

"Not really. It's like comforting to know she's in there, and alive and healthy. I mean sure she kicks the h. e. l. l. out of me, but I don't know… it's my daughter."

She was for certain swooning over her daughter and knew it should always be that way.

"So I saw you holding Drew, he's gotten so big! I can't believe it."

"Yea well I can say the same thing about my nephew in there. I can't wait to see him in the morning"

Haley lowered herself on the couch and took a long drink of the ice cold water Lucas had brought in for her. The three sat in the living room for nearly an hour talking and catching up on everything in their lives.

"…so that's pretty much all of it. It's been hell not having him here, just with taking care of Jay alone, and I'm so hormonal that if I'm not worrying about Nathan, then I'm crying my eyes out. I'm just ready for him to come back."

"Well we're here Hales. The painters are painting tomorrow, and the day after that, the moving truck will be here, so until then we're staying here!" she said cheerfully.

"Babe, you're supposed to _ask_ Haley if we can stay here. Remember we're working on not inviting ourselves places, but to be invited." He laughed to himself. His wife would never change, and he wouldn't want it any other way.

Haley laughed remembering just how much she missed her best friend. "Of course. You guys can stay here as long as you need to. I'm sure we're not gonna be able to pry those boys away from each other anytime soon."

She was glad that Drew was back, and knew that Jay would be as well. She worried about her little boy, and how all this would affect him, but knowing that he would have someone to play with nearly all the time, helped calm her.

After grabbing fresh towels and such for her guest, Haley wished Lucas and Brooke sweet dreams, then retreated back into her room and climbed in bed. Rubbing her stomach, Haley turned on the iPod dock that sat on her bedside and played the song This Years Love by David Gray on repeat until she fell asleep.

It was approaching nine thirty when Jay started to move around and stretch his limbs out of their slumberous position. Stretching his arms out, he immediately came in contact with something hard that let out a groan directly after contact was made. Jerking his head to the right, Jay was shocked to see his cousin rubbing his eyes next to him.

"Are you real Drew or am I dreaming again?" he asked excitedly.

"You're crazy Jay. How can you be dreaming and talking to me? Me, mommy, and daddy came back last yesterday. They told me we're not going to be on da' woad' anymore and we get to move into ouwa' new house."

"Good, cause I missed you guys a whole lot of times. Did you know my daddy is gone, it makes me and mommy sad but she'll be happy since you're here now, just like me."

Drew nodded his head in agreement and the two boys leaned in and shared a hug that ended in a wrestling match on the bed.

They were such boys.

Before it got too crazy, Jay stopped Drew. "Wait! We need to go potty first. You go in my bafroom, and I'll go use mommy's"

Nodding his head, Drew headed to the bathroom across from Jay's room, while Jay ran down the hall towards his parents room.

When he ran through the master bedroom door, Haley immediately sat up and watched him tear into the bathroom. She still wasn't sure what was going on, until she heard the toilet seat being lifted up, and heard him using the bathroom. Smiling to herself, she climbed out of bed, slipped on her slippers, and made her way into the bathroom after him.

"Morning baby" she said going over to the sink to brush her teeth. It felt like the baby was sitting on her bladder, and she really needed to use her bathroom. "How come you're not using your bathroom buddy?"

"Drew is using my bafroom mommy, he was in my bed when I woked up. Did you know he was here?" he said tearing off a piece of toilet paper and wiping the drops of urine off the toilet.

"Yep, Uncle Lucas and Aunt Brooke came last night, and Uncle Lucas put him in your bed with you" she said after praising him for cleaning the seat. Nathan had been teaching him that right before he left. "There in the guest room, here wash your hands, then go wake them up with your cousin."

She laughed out loud when he was done, and made a bee line for his room dragging Drew behind him down the hall. As much as Haley wanted to see her nephew, she had to use the bathroom first.

Brooke groaned when Lucas attempted to sit up in bed, once again disturbing her sleep that morning. She had been so comfortable lying on his chest all night, and was definitely feeling jet lag. "Broody, just stop moving, give me like ten more minutes and I promise I'll let you get up" she compromised.

Going to conferences, and meetings had gotten Lucas used to getting up earlier than he normally would have. His wife on the other hand, loved sleeping in until Drew would wake her up. There little guy was an early riser, so she took advantage of every second of sleep she got.

"Crap" Brooke mumbled into Lucas' shirt.

"What?"

"Just listen" she could _always_ hear Drew running when he was coming to wake her up, and she knew there was no doubt that she heard two pair of feet running towards their bedroom door. "They're both coming to wake us up Luke. Kill me now before they come in" she said jokingly.

Sitting up and fixing her tank top that was twisted and nearly coming off, Brooke hid under the covers when the door creaked open and the laughing boys threw themselves onto the bed.

"Big Jay! We missed you buddy!" Lucas said lifting his nephew onto his stomach and hugging him. He couldn't believe how big he'd gotten in the months he'd been gone. It seemed like yesterday when he'd see the boy everyday of the week.

"I missed you too Uncle Lucas, and Aunt Brooke" he turned towards the bulge in the bed where Brooke was hiding and started poking it. "I can feel you Aunt Brooke" he said giggling when she started to move around. Before Jay could blink, Brooked popped from under the covers, and had Jay on her lap smothering his face in kisses.

"Oh Baby Jay, your favorite Aunt Brooke missed you sooo much. And you've gotten so big! What on earth have you been eating?"

It was so natural for Brooke to love Jay as her own. When she would look after him and take both boys out, people would immediately assume that the two were twins after seeing the dark headed boys with wide eyes. The only real difference back then was Jay's dark _black_ locks, and Drew's dark _brown_ locks. Anyone who saw them now, would really have to think twice about calling them twins. Drew's drastic color change proved just how strong Lucas' genes were. They'd watched in amazement as the young boys' hair slowly turned as blonde, if not more, as his fathers. Jay's coloring had also evened out to match his mothers' coloring.

Hearing the laughter coming from her son's mouth, Haley stood at the door and just listened. It had been a while since she'd seen her little guy that happy, and couldn't be more grateful that her in laws had come home.

"Alright Drew, get over here and give me a hug kid" she said coming into the room and climbing in the bed when Lucas scooted over. She had to give him a side hug since her stomach got in the way. She smiled when he put his small hand against her stomach, and moved it around. "Is that your baby in there Naley?"

She laughed and looked over at the innocent grin plastered on her best friends face. When Drew started to talk, it was hard for him to pronounce 'Aunt Haley' so it always came out sounding like 'Taley', which made Brooke insist that he call her "Naley". But now that he could talk, he refused to call her anything but 'Naley' or 'Aunt Naley'.

"You could at least call me _Aunt_ Naley Drew. And yes, that is your baby girl cousin. She's getting really big, and when she wakes up, I'll let you feel her kick"

After lying around for another few minutes, Brooke and Haley started on breakfast while Luke got the boys bathed and dressed for the day. It was quickly decided that Lucas would take the boys out to do some 'fun male bonding things' and the two ladies would have a total girls day out. After breakfast and hooking Jays' booster seat in next to Drew's the guys were on their way in Lucas' Range Rover, and the ladies in Haley's Altima.

"How did you know this was exactly what I needed?"

Haley was sitting next to Brooke in the messaging chair as they both got pedicures. She hadn't felt this relaxed since her husband left weeks ago, and was soaking up every minute of it.

"Well besides the fact that you're practically my sister, we've been best friends for like ever now. All throughout college getting pedicures and manicures was like your safe haven. You love to be pampered, and what women doesn't? Besides you deserve it; a day to yourself, so enjoy it. Either way I know I deserve it. Is there a such thing as being 'road leg'? Because I feel like we've been traveling forever."

"Yea, how did that work out, traveling with a four year old all over the west coast? It's like pulling teeth just driving to the beach with Jay" she couldn't imagine being in the car with her young son for hours.

"Well you know at first they had us on planes, and if was fun and everything. I mean, Drew had never been on a plane and he loved it, then after the fourth time traveling back and forth on a plane, I think all three of us were frustrated with it, so we told them we needed another option. So we decided on taking a train. Drew was thrilled and loved it, and so did we. It had a bed, bathroom, the whole nine yards, but after riding _that_ back and forth on three trains, it kind of gets old. So we went to rental cars, and basically repeated the whole pattern until we decided to just leave. It was fun, exciting, but even more exhausting, and I'm just ready to be home for a long time"

Haley was about to speak until she saw the tears building up in her friends eyes She reached over and grabbed her hand, giving it a squeeze and waiting for her to go on. "It was hard Hales. I mean we were gone nearly a year, and staying in each city for at least a month, it was hard. It's not that I regret it at all. I mean Lucas had worked so hard for that, and I am so proud of him, but I'm so glad it's over. I told him we're not taking a family vacation for another year" she said the last part laughing. "Plus I missed my Haley and my godson, not to mention you're about to give birth soon. I threatened Lucas to get us out of this as soon as possible and if I missed her being born I would never sleep with him again" she said giggling when the Asian lady working on her feet decided to then start talking to her friends. She knew they _had_ to be talking about her.

Haley laughed knowing only imagining Lucas's response to her best friends threat. "And what did he have to say about that?"

"He said, and I quote, 'really Brooke, and give up all _this_' I'm telling you Haley you should have seen his face. He looked ridiculous! I told him I would never use that threat again as long as he never did that pose again."

They were both cracking up, knowing that they were probably the laughing stock of the entire boutique but didn't mind at all.

It felt good to be home

On the other side of town, Lucas held both boys' small hands in his one large hand, while he handed the guy at the counter the three tickets. Being the 'manly men' that they were, Lucas surprised the boys with a trip to the Annual Monster Truck Show that came every year.

"Alright guys do not let go of my hand okay. We're gonna get you both a cinnamon pretzel but what's the rule?"

"No telling mommy" they both giggled out in unison.

"Right, no telling mommy you got sugar before your dinner. So come on, and then we'll get our seats."

They made their way through the line and to their seats just minutes before the show started. They were both standing on their seats trying to finish off the pretzel before they began. Lucas could see the excitement in their faces, and put an arm around each boy making sure they didn't fall. After glancing around the entire outdoor arena, Lucas's eyes connected with Jay's and received a huge smile followed by tons of giggling.

_Nathan_

All he could think about was his brother and how he should have been here, enjoying this moment, and seeing the excitement on his sons face. He knew if it was up to Nathan, he would have been here with Jay sitting atop his shoulders, making some smart ass comment about all the rednecks there. Leaning over he placed a kiss on his nephews head, making a promise to himself to care for his brothers' family until he could get home.

"Goodness Brooke, I hope you're going to be spoiling me like this all the time because this is definitely not a _one _time thing"

"Haley! When was the last time, you've gotten your hair washed? Not by you, but someone else?" She asked in horror.

Turning her head upright, Haley continued to allow the women's hands to message her scalp. "Like I said, it's been busy. Maybe two months or so, I don't know. One thing I do know is that I'm in heaven right now. Now tell me again why you aren't getting your hair done?"

"Because, oh precious sister of mine, I got mine done two weeks ago, and I do not want my hair falling out. Besides, this is your day and I only plan to involve myself in every other activity on our list. So it was either get my hair done _again_, or pig out on ice cream. I love you Hales, but I've Chosen Darkness" she said brazenly.

"Oh Brooke," she said closing her eyes, and enjoying being pampered, "You are too much"

"Thank you" Haley added after a long pause.

Lucas hung up the phone with Brooke and quickly glanced behind him to check on the two boys that were currently asleep in their car seats. They were each holding a huge foam hand that read 'Monster's Rule'.

Pulling into the driveway of his brothers' house, he gave a small wave to Brooke who was waiting to help him unload the sleeping boys.

"Hello wife" he said smiling at her as his arms encircled her waist.

"Husband" she greeted before kissing his lips gently. "How was your boys' day out?"

"It was great, how was your girls' day with Haley? Where is she?"

"It was amazing, hence your lovely sister in law asleep in her bed, not even half way into our movie."

After getting both boys out of the car, Lucas tucked Jay into his bed, while Brooke brought Drew into their room and tucked him in. Not long after Brooke slid into bed beside her sleeping son, did Lucas exit the shower and join his family.

Feeling her full bladder, Haley made her way into the bathroom, then down the hall into Jay's room. Kissing his temple and tucking him further in, she retreated to her room, and easily fell back into her deep slumber.

_Today was better_

_Much better._

**SOOOOOOOO… There it is! The chapter that took me forever to write! I just wanted to add this one in simply for fun and for you guys. If you have ideas of any kind, or want to see something that you've thought of, let me know and I'll see if I can get that for you. I've read stories that I've wanted to see certain scenes happen and would have loved to see it, so let me know!**

**Thanks and enjoy!**

**Jennifer.**


	12. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

**HI to all! I know it's been a while since I've updated but just been tweaking this chapter big time. Now there were still a few things I wasn't too sure about with this chapter, so instead of waiting longer, I actually just cut it in half and I hate to say it but it's SUPER short! No worries, though I really plan to update again no later than Tuesday! SO it's short, but it'll get you ready for the next chapter so enjoy and please review!**

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When Nathan left, all the days somehow seemed to go by slower, but after the return of the other Scott's, time seem to fly by. It was now three days until Christmas, and tomorrow Lucas and Drew were supposed to take Haley and Jay out. He was deemed her 'husband for the day', and he had big plans for the four of them. She first she was skeptical about the arrangement she was obviously _not_ in on, but quickly gave in, knowing that Jay could use the distraction of not having his daddy home on Christmas for the first time.

A first for them both.

Besides getting Jason out of the house, Haley knew that she could talk Lucas into buying her anything she wanted to eat.

Her cravings hadn't gotten as weird as they had when she was pregnant with Jason. Nathan would be shaken awake just before falling into a deep sleep, only to hear his wife's sweet, innocent voice begging him to get up and get her a big slice of watermelon along with a slice of cheese. He never objected. He would calmly slide out of bed, but once he was in the kitchen, she could faintly hear him cursing under his breath. Nearly four and a half weeks away from her due date and it broke Haley's heart not being able to share this with her husband.

The next morning Haley opened her eyes, and knew immediately she wanted to take a warm bath. Peeking into her son's room, she knew he'd sleep long enough for her to soak in the tub for a good while. It had been about two weeks since he'd last slept in his parents' bed, and although Haley got lonely, her stomach had grown even more, but their sons' sleeping habits hadn't changed. They usually winded down by watching one of the many movies Haley had from Netflix, and she usually ended up carrying the sleeping child into his room.

That was unless she had her case of Braxton Hicks that were proving to be even worse the second time around.

Looking over at the small clock on the counter, Haley started to let the water slowly drain from the huge fountain tub, and thought about what she would be wearing today. It was Christmas Eve, Eve, and although she and Jay would be gone most of the day, Brooke was staying there while family came to prepare for dinner. Haley's two single sisters had driven into town, and although they had booked a hotel room weeks ago, they opted to stay with Haley and Jason Christmas day so they wouldn't be alone. Not wanting to hurt anyone's feelings, Haley agreed, and left Brooke in charge until she returned that night. She wasn't really sure why Brooke would be there all day. Due to Haley's recent 'nesting' period, they opted for cooking everything at Brooke's and bringing it over later that night. She wasn't exactly sure why Brooke wanted to lounge around at her place until then, but she learned long ago to choose her battles with Brooke.

Just as Haley started to lift herself out of the tub, she heard the house phone ringing, and reached over to the small cordless phone that was lying a few feet away. Starting up the two steps in the tub, Haley's foot missed the second one by an inch causing her to slip forward. She luckily got both hands on the top step before any harm was physically done, and let out a shaky breath trying to desperately calm herself down. She was shaking inside, and was relieved that her worse fear wasn't coming true. _Something happening to her baby while she was alone._

She knew that had to be Nathan calling this early, and slowly made her way out of the tub and to where the phone was. She definitely didn't want him to be worried since she _always_ picked up when he called in the morning.

"Hey" she breathed out uneasily. He immediately knew something was wrong.

"Hales? You okay?"

"Hold on a minute, I need to get my robe and sit down" it was another minute before she picked up the phone again, now sitting on her bed securely wrapped in her bathrobe.

Nathan waited as patiently as he could on the other end. He could definitely tell that she was crying, and wanted to know what had happened.

"What's going on Haley?" he said hearing her greet him once again.

"I'm fine, but I was just getting out of the tub when the phone rang, and I was trying to reach it and I slipped" she felt ashamed. She had been in too much of a rush, and put the baby in danger.

"Did you fall? Are you hurt?" his questions were back to back, laced with concern and worry.

"Nathan, I'm fine. I caught myself and I'm not hurt. It just really scared me. I've gotten a lot bigger, and with Christmas Eve tomorrow, and everyone coming over, I think I'm just getting stressed out"

She could hear him sighing on the other end, probably beating himself up once again for not being there.

"I know I'm not helping any, I really should be home."

"I wish you could. I at least thought they would allow you guys to be home for Christmas" just the thought and actuality of not being with him on Christmas brought tears to her eyes.

"Didn't you say Brooke is coming over today?"

"Yea, you know how I told you he's taking me and Jay out for the day, well lazy Brooke is hanging out here until later. I think Luke's gonna ask me for help picking out something for Brooke. With getting moved into the house, I guess the loser forgot to pick up a few other things for her. I tell you, you Scott men are something else" she said smiling.

Her husband knew just how to make her smile. Walking over to their closet, she grabbed the bottle of his favorite cologne and inhaled the scent that reminded her so much of her husband. She wasn't sure why he left it, but enjoyed spraying her husband's clothes with it, and pretending that he was indeed still there with her.

"You smell so good" _She knew_ that _he knew_ what she was talking about. "Husband, I have a question" she said pulling out her outfit for the day.

"Go ahead" he said giving her his undivided attention.

"I don't know what to do, Jay is still asking for a puppy everyday, and talking non stop about how he's been so good this year, so he _knows _Santa is bringing him one. What am I supposed to do, it's not like I can just go get him one today. And if there's no puppy on Christmas, he'll hate Santa"

"First things first, I say we drop this whole 'Santa' thing now"

Laughing out loud, Haley denied that idea altogether. "Well we could, I mean he'll cry, go to pre-school tell the other kids, then we'll get twenty phone calls from angry parents. I don't think so Scott" she told him to wait a second while she slipped on her bra and shirt.

"How about this," Nathan started when she was back on. "Tell him sometimes, Santa can't always give you what you want"

"You know, a few days ago, Drew was over and he hadn't written a letter to Santa, so while I helped him, Jay decided to write another that only had one thing"

"What was it, a puppy?"

"Nope, it was for his daddy to come home" she really wasn't sure if she was going to tell him about Jay's new letter, but she didn't want to lie to him.

"Dammit Haley! I shouldn't be here, I should be at home with you making sure you're okay, and getting Jay dressed _myself_. I told you that you wouldn't have to be alone in this pregnancy, and look at you now. Alone!"

He was getting worked up, which in return got her worked up as well.

"Stop it! Nathan, I know you don't want to be there. I know I should be making you go out at crazy times to get me weird foods! I should be making you hang up decorations in the nursery, but I'm not! And I'm okay with that. You HAVE to be there. By Law, and there's nothing we can do about it without causing more problems! This is not your fault, so stop blaming yourself" she said now crying.

"You give me too much credit Hales, and I don't deserve it"

"Yea and you know what I don't deserve? That beautiful, smart, crazy little boy asleep down the hall, and this beautiful little angel that's kicking the hell out of me right now. I have two out of three of the best things in the world right here " she said chocking on her words "and that's all because of you. Stop being so hard on yourself." Haley took a few deep breaths instantly feeling the kicking subside inside her. "I gotta get Jay up and get him ready, you wanna talk to him?"

"Yea," he muttered after a minute of silence "I miss my lil man"

"You wouldn't believe how tall he's actually getting"

Nathan had to laugh at that. Their son definitely inherited his wives short stature. "Good! He's small as hell to be four"

"Well daddy, according to him, he's already five years old"

Haley made her way into her sons' room, now fully dressed and went to sit next to him at the head of his full size bed.

"Jay, time to wake up sleepy head" she said gently rubbing his back.

"No mommy" he buried his head further into the pillow and cuddled deeper into the soft blanket he loved.

"Babe, you gotta get up"

"Is daddy here now" he said moving his head around to eye her carefully.

She knew that her husband heard his innocent question. "No, but he's on the phone and he wants to talk to you"

"Yay, let me talk mommy" he said before standing on the bed equaling her height. Grabbing the phone from his mommy, Jay plopped back down on the bed, and leaned back against the pillows.

"Hi daddy"

"Hey man! I miss you"

"I miss you too" he said grinning "can you come home yet?"

"Not yet buddy, but I'm trying"

Haley came back over to the bed holding Jay's outfit for the day, and then started to strip him of his night clothes. She put lotion on him, and then put on his jeans, undershirt and socks.

"Jay give me the phone and go use the bathroom, and brush your teeth. Then you can have it back"

He ran into his bathroom and in just a few minutes after, he returned with a bright smile on his face while he held his small hand out for the phone. After putting his shoes on him, Haley went o grab him a bowl of cereal.

Once she was done with his shoes, Jay followed her into the kitchen while he talked a hole in Nathan's ear.

Haley smiled knowing they both needed that. She and Nathan tried as hard as possible to avoid another phone call like the first one they'd had when he talked to his daddy. He'd gotten on the phone and cried while begging and pleading for him to come home. He'd gone so far as to telling Nathan that he was sick. The sobbing alone had the boy chocked up, and eventually he'd gotten so worked up that he _had_ thrown up and gotten himself sick. After that episode, they tried to make their conversations less frequent or at least whenever she thought Jay could handle it.

"Alright Jay, let me talk to daddy while you eat your breakfast. Tell daddy bye and you'll talk to him later"

"Daddy, I got's to eat my Lucky Chawms', but I'll talk to you later, I love you"

"I love you too buddy, to infinity..."

"And beyond" he responded giggling.

"That was a good safe conversation" Haley said when she had the phone back

"Yea it was good" In the background Nathan heard the door bell ring, and knew that Lucas, Brooke and Drew had arrived. "Hey, let me speak to Brooke really quick"

Brooke walked into the house in front of Lucas who had Drew literally hanging off his arm. She tilted her head to the side and gave Haley a questioning look when she handed her the phone, and went to clean up Jay's bowl.

"Hello" Brooke said into the phone.

"Hey, it's me. How's everything for tonight with dinner and afterwards?"

Brooke instantly made her way a few feet away from Haley.

"It's pretty good. Luke is taking her and the boys out, so I'm gonna hang around here setting stuff up, then go home with everyone and cook, then come _back_ over, we'll all have dinner when Haley gets back. Everything we talked about last week will be done, and they got the major stuff done earlier this week while Haley finished shopping for Jay. The rest is ready to be brought in once they leave so we're good on time. Besides Lucas knows to tire her out, but not too bad. It'll all be one hundred percent done by tonight."

"Good, thanks for all your help, I figured you'll try to take over anyway so why not let you" he said laughing when she scoffed in protest.

"No problem Nate, and I know you miss her, and you're worried about her and all, but don't worry. We're looking out for her and making sure all three of them are good. Here's your wife back, they're about to leave. I'll talk to you later Nate"

Haley grabbed the phone from Brooke and smiled as she watched the brunette kiss her husband and son goodbye. "Bye babe, I'll probably call you in a little while, once I'm ready to kill Lucas for dragging me around a mall just days before the busiest holiday."

"Alright Hales, tell Lucas to keep all those guys off you" he said in all seriousness that his wife scoffed at. What is with the Scott women and scoffing?

"Yea right, I look like a blimp"

"Yea, but you're my blimp Hales. I love you and I'll talk to you later."

"Whatever, I love you too. Bye"

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By the time Haley got home, her sisters were there and waiting to say grace for dinner. Before her and Jay could even get their coats off, they were brought into the circle to pray. Once her older sister was done, Haley took Jay to change into his night clothes seeing as though it was already after seven. She made her way back out to her few guest and smiled as people smothered Jay with kisses and got excited about her protruding stomach. She wasn't sure why Lucas had kept them out as late as they were, plus with the holiday traffic, things had gotten hectic.

She felt bad for not eating with them, but both she and Jay were dead tired and she wanted to be with her son and baby.

Changing into some pajama's Haley climbed into her bed next to Jay, knowing she couldn't handle sleeping alone tonight. She looked up and smiled when Brooke came in looking beautiful in a new dress.

"Do you guys want anything to eat?" Lucas had told her how tired Haley really was and that she should rest as soon as she got in. He'd felt bad for how long he'd kept them out, but he'd made sure she wasn't on her feet much and was not under much stress.

"Nah, we're good. He's dead tired, Lucas definitely kept his word on wearing us out."

"Okay, well do you need anything before I leave?"

"Actually yes, could you tell Dan and Deb that I'll call them sometime tomorrow, but I kinda just wanna spend some time with Jay. They were planning on coming straight here and I know it's so unfair and inconsiderate since it's our tradition but it won't be the same with Nathan gone. I kinda just wanna have some time with Jay and skype with Nathan tomorrow, just us."

Usually the Scotts would make their way down to San Antonio on Christmas Eve and spend the day as well as Christmas Day with Nathan and Lucas' family. The day after Christmas, Lucas and Brooke would take Drew back up with Dan and Deb to spend the rest of the holiday through New Years with them, while Haley, Nathan and Jay went to visit the James' crew. Things were definitely different this year, but Haley was happy to not be traveling so much. She just wanted to spend this holiday in her home.

"No problem Hales. I'll take care of everything. Dan and Deb are driving down tomorrow night and I'll have them just stay with us, so don't worry. I love you okay, get some rest and we'll talk to you tomorrow"

"Love you too, thanks so much Brooke. And thanks for decorating the house, Jay loves it and I just didn't have the energy.

Nodding her head, Brooke leaned up and kissed Haley's and her sleeping god son's cheek, then rubbed her stomach before leaving.

When Haley woke up in the middle of the night, Jay was right at her side awake as well. Skipping out on dinner, they were both hungry, so Haley fixed them up a small plate of food to share. Making their way back to the room with the plate, Haley froze hearing something at the front door. Seeing the door knob being twisted, she grabbed Jay's hand tightly in hers, and started quickly towards her bedroom when she heard her name called... by a voice she knew too well.

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**AN: Hate me? Who's at the door? It could be anyone so no speculating. Lol Like I promised I'll have your next update Tuesday at the latest, and it's very long, so I hope that makes up for this little bit of read. Thanks for reading and review!**

**Jennifer**


	13. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

**Okay guys, this is the next chapter and I hope you enjoy it.**

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STAY WITH ME- Danity Kane

When Haley woke up in the middle of the night, Jay was right at her side awake as well. Skipping out on dinner, they were both hungry, so Haley fixed them up a small plate of food to share. Making their way back to the room with the plate, Haley froze hearing something at the front door. Seeing the door knob being twisted, she grabbed Jay's hand tightly in hers, and started quickly towards her bedroom when she heard her name called... by a voice she knew too well.

"Haley" Was the_ loud_ whisper.

She quickly turned around and saw her husband standing at the door clutching onto a bag of wrapped presents.

"Daddy!" Jay screamed out. Dropping his mothers' hand, he rushed over to his daddy, and just before he jumped into his arms, Nathan dropped the bag, next to him, craving the hug from his son.

All Haley could do was look on in shock.

"I missed you so much daddy" he said running his hands over his newly shaven head.

"Buddy, I missed you too. You got so big!" realizing that Haley was still too far away from him, he slowly let Jay down to his feet, and slowly approached her.

"Hi Hales" That was all she needed, and meeting him halfway, Haley was in her husbands' arms softly crying. "God I missed you Haley. I love you…. so much"

It was hard for her to handle all her emotions, but she tried her best.

Pulling back from him, she rubbed his cheeks softly with her fingertips as if she was trying to decide if he was real. She definitely couldn't deal with this being a dream. Leaning forward, she brushed her lips against his, before realizing he was real and fully kissing him on the lips. Before either of them could stop themselves, they got lost in each other. Lips parted, tongues entered, and everything else faded.

"I miss you" Haley told her husband when they finally parted. "How did you leave" she had to know what was going on.

"Just for tonight baby" he said kissing her forehead.

The first thing he noticed about her was how beautiful she looked. The pictures he had of his wife on base were _nothing_ compared to how beautiful she was at that very moment. Next, he noticed her stomach. She had gotten bigger and he smiled proudly at the sight of his child growing in her womb. Taking a step back, and putting a hand on either side of her stomach, he glanced back at his son. "Hey Jay, why don't you look through the bag, and put the ones with your name together"

After seeing him nod, he knew that would keep him busy for a while. Turning back to his wife, he walked her towards the kitchen and out of his son's sight. Haley let out a gasp when Nathan grabbed the back of her thighs, and hoisted her up on the counter, coming to move in between her legs.

"You look so beautiful and sexy right now." He said kissing the side of her neck, right under her chin.

"You're just saying that Scott" she might have been pregnant, emotional and an all around basket case lately, but the desire of her husband always overpowered everything.

"Not a chance. I have honestly never been more turned on than I am right now seeing my mark _clearly_ left on you." He said softly biting down on the soft spot. His lips never stopped as they trailed down her neck and back up before landing on her lips in a hungry kiss. Lacing his fingers with hers, he let his mouth work over hers hungrily, regretting how long it'd been since he was able to kiss his wife.

Relishing in the taste of her mouth, Nathan groaned at tightness of his pants and how hard he suddenly was. While still exploring her mouth, he brought one of her hands down to feel just how much he wanted her, while his other snaked up the side of her shirt craving the touch of her soft skin.

Before she could respond, Nathan quickly pulled back and let out a gut-busting laugh. He wasn't sure if he was even more turned on or proud when he felt the swift, sharp kicks to his chest from his daughter. Reaching forward he felt around his wives stomach searching for the small foot that was doing all the kicking.

"Hey baby girl, daddy is here and he missed you too. She's grown so much… she's kind of a cock block too" he said laughing when she shoved his shoulder playfully.

"Heck yea she has, she's getting heavy" she said smiling at him while playing with his fingers.

"Daddy, can I open one of my presents tonight please" he said running back in and letting the puppy eyes out in full effect.

Haley was quicker, and answered him before he could, 'Not unless I get to open one too" she said sliding off the counter and over to the bag of presents.

Lifting Jay over his shoulder, Nathan carried him over to the family room's couch where his wife was already seated. "Alright, so you gotta stay here, and I'm gonna go get your present Jay, so close your eyes and no peeking"

Haley sat Jay on her lap and covered his eyes with her hands. She watched Nathan come back in through the garage, and bring in a blue and orange Hummer Power Wheel and place it down at the start of the long hallway. He came back over to Haley and picked Jay up off her lap and carried him over while his eyes remained close. "Alright, open up big Jay!" opening his eyes, the kid let out a screech and was immediately placed down when his feet started to wildly kick against his fathers' legs.

Jumping in the car, he turned the key and off he went down the hall towards the guest bedroom. Every time they'd go to toys' r us, he'd play in the power wheels until the sales clerk told them it wasn't allowed, so he knew how to work one and would always beg his parents for one.

The two parents laughed when they faintly heard Jay yell out 'thanks daddy' and proceeded to speed down the hallway.

"Wait just a minute, now if you want to see your present you have to follow me" he led her down the hall to the room next to Jay's and she was surprised to see a huge pink bow on the door. She _clearly_ hadn't noticed before.

"Where did this come from" she must have been drained when she'd gotten home to not notice the addition to the door.

"Just close your eyes" she did as she was told, and he led her into the room after he opened the door. "Open"

She looked around the room and nearly passed out from shock. The whole nursery had been set up beautifully and she was speechless. Walking towards the crib, she ran her hand along the dark chocolate wood and soft pink and brown polka-dotted bedding. The bedding made her smile but looking closely at the actual crib brought tears to her eyes. "Is this… baby is this the crib?" she said turning to Nathan who was sitting in the plush rocking chair she had yet to notice. It sat in the corner of the room next to the built in wall shelves she fell in love with when they first purchased their home. The shelves were lined with books, a few soft stuffed animals and pictures frames.

Pulling her onto his lap, Nathan handed her a small remote indicating for her to press play. Once the small button was pressed, it only took a second for music to pour out of the sides of the crib and the beautiful melody of David Gray's _This Year's Love_ filled their ears. "Now she can have her own playlist once she's here" Nathan whispered in his wives ear.

Noticing how enamored Haley was with her surprise, Nathan decided to give her some time to herself. "Let me go get Jay to bed, and I'll be back" he spoke quietly against her lips.

She spent the next few minutes walking around the room, and looking through the closet to see what had already been done. All the clothes she and family members had gotten for her baby girl, had been put up. Her little outfits on hangers, and her onesies in the drawer. Under the changing table were packs of diapers, and wipes for refill, as well as extra pad covers for the changing pad. She hadn't noticed the cream walls with tiny brown polka dots and fell even more in love with the room. Taking another look around, she smiled at the soft pink curtains that were hung up, the brown lantern light on the changing table. Her most favorite thing about the nursery was the initials that were painted over her daughters crib in beautiful script. Her husband really knew how to play her.

It was about twenty minutes later when Nathan walked back into his daughters' nursery to see a bag of baby clothes sitting on the changing table and his wife folding the tiny pieces of fabric. He wasn't surprised seeing as it had taken a while to get Jay back down. He'd asked so many questions and wanted to know everything about what he had been up to. Nathan didn't even realize how much he missed his son's laughter and smile until he heard it again that night.

"Should I even ask who that's from?"

"Nope, this is one of six tutu's her Aunt Brooke has gotten her. Different sizes too, I swear she buys her something new every day"

"Well with Brooke around we will probably save a ton on clothes for her the first year" he picked up a purple onesie that read "cute as a button" and held it up to Haley's stomach.

"Speaking of Brooke…. It's perfect Nathan. I can't believe it, this is what she was doing all day, isn't it?"

"Well she's been working on it since last week really. She had the walls done last week while you and Jay were out and set up the furniture and everything else today while you were out. I just, I really wanted it to be done for Christmas, and she helped me out a lot. So did Lucas, they were willing to sacrifice a lot so that I could do this for you."

"Did she know you were coming?"

"No, and she doesn't know that I'm here. It was nearly impossible to get away Hales, but I knew I couldn't be away from you on Christmas Eve no matter what anyone said. You know how special Christmas Eve is for us Hales….. there's no way I could miss it."

* * *

_Walking into her apartment, Haley dropped her back pack at the front door and ran to plug her phone into the charger near her bed. She had forgotten to bring her charger to work with her and after the twelve hour shift she'd just had, her phone had been dead before half the day was gone. It was well after seven that night and she wanted to see if she had any messages from Nathan. He had been shipped over to Kuwait just after Halloween and would stay there for about twelve weeks. _

_Haley was very appreciative of the time frame she received this time but couldn't imagine not seeing him until weeks after the New Year. She was also grateful to know that he wouldn't be in any danger. He was simply going over in place of an officer that was home for a couple of months handling personal issues, and would be over seeing the work done on the construction equipment. They had been separated for much longer than three months, but with him on "inactive, active" duty they were able to talk and Skype nearly every day that he was gone._

_Nathan had left one message on her phone saying that he wouldn't be able to Skype with her for the next few days because he was flying somewhere else that he was needed but would talk to her when he got the chance. _

_Haley waited till she was in the shower before she let the tears fall. She knew in her heart that Nathan was her future and prayed that it wouldn't always be this way. _

_It took only minutes for Haley to fall into a deep sleep once she turned on her music later that night. She'd had a draining long day and welcomed the uninterrupted sleep. _

"_Hello?" Haley's voice was thick with sleep when she answered her ringing phone from her bed. _

"_Hey baby, did I wake you?" _

_Pulling the phone from her ear, she glanced at the illuminated screen, "umm yea I'm usually sleep at six thirty-nine Nathan. Especially after working that horrible twelve hour ER shift yesterday."_

"_Sorry baby, just go back to sleep, I'll talk to you soon. Just sleep, love you"_

"_uh hmm" she agreed "you too" A part of her wanted to protest, loving the sound of his voice, but she knew she'd be no good without at least another hour of sleep._

_Sliding her phone back on her nightstand, Haley pulled her blanket over her head fully intending on sleeping as long as possible._

"_You must have had such a long day Hales" _

_His voice startled her and she reached for her phone again, "sorry babe, I thought I hung up.. I'll call you when I'm up okay? Did you get to wherever they sent you?"_

"_Yea I made it safely. It's not so bad here, I kinda like it. You hang up now sweetie I'll talk to you soon, just call me when you wake up"_

_Haley took her phone and pressed the red button until it powered off, and dropped it back to its' original place. _

_Haley wasn't sure how long she had been asleep when she felt soft, feather like kisses on her shoulder. Smiling in her sleep, she moved her head, giving him more access to her neck and blushed deeply. "He's gonna tease me when I tell him about this dream" she said lazily to herself. It wouldn't be the first time she'd had a dream about Nathan, but none of them had ever felt this real._

"_Yea, you think he'll be excited you're dreaming about him" his lips moved over her chin, nipping at the soft skin before hovering over her lips. "Hales, open your eyes"_

_She refused to be awakened from this dream and kept her eyes closed until he'd asked her a third time. Her brow creased when she saw Nathan's handsome face directly over hers and she let out a yelp when his lips connected with hers in a fierce kiss. Her eyes widened and she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself up straddling his lap. She continued to kiss him still in a daze. "This isn't a dream right?" she asked._

"_Not a dream Hales" he said gently pushing her to lie back down. "You're phones turned off, I'm in San Antonio, and you're wide awake right now" the second his tongue entered her mouth, she pushed him away and tore into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. _

_Nathan stood at the door listening to the quiet sobs coming from inside the small bathroom. A minute later, the door opened and she stood there with disheveled hair and watery eyes looking more beautiful than ever. "You're here huh?" Seeing him nod once, Haley rushed into his arms, pushing herself as close as she could to him and let a few more tears fall. _

"_I'm so happy you lied"_

_He let out a chuckle and squeezed her tighter, placing kisses on her hair while smoothing it back. Pushing her back a little he leaned in and kissed her lips gently before whispering "Merry Christmas Eve Hales"_

* * *

Walking into their bedroom, Haley started getting ready for bed, not being able to take her eyes off her husband.

"So….. about the crib" she started.

"You mean the crib that has a built in cd player on the side? The one you were eyeing so much at the store that day."

"But in the store you complained about how expensive it was."

"Hales, that was because I wanted to surprise you with it, and besides I'm sure you've been falling asleep listening to your IPOD, so she's already used to hearing music before bed."

"But Nathan that room… babe I'm not that naïve, I know it wasn't cheap. I mean there's _art_ on the wall"

He knew where this was coming from and before she could get herself upset, Nathan brought her into his embrace from behind and started rubbing her stomach.

"You remember the biggest fight we had while you were pregnant with Jay? I had come home from work and couldn't find you right away and was nearly worried sick until I found you in our closet on the phone with your mom. You were telling her how you were so upset about getting pregnant and that it just wasn't fair right now. I had never been so furious and just stormed out and when I came back, I was completely drunk."

"I was so worried about you and when you came home accusing me of wanting to get an abortion I was confused and so upset and then I realized you hadn't heard what I was really saying to my mom"

"You were upset because we couldn't afford to have the nursery done like we wanted for Jason. He deserved the best and we couldn't give him that and it scared you. So I made a promise to you that night Hales"

They swayed back and forth reliving the moments aloud. "You promised that one day our kids wouldn't want for anything, and that we would be able to afford to give them what we felt they needed and deserved"

"That's why that crib is here Haley, because our daughter deserves it. She can have what we couldn't give Jay. We're blessed to bring in two incomes and live a pretty great life to where we don't have to struggle like we did back them."

"I love you" she whispered turning in his arm and pressing herself against his chest. "Let's go to bed"

After a few minutes, Nathan changed clothes and climbed into bed with his wife, taking mental pictures in his head for when he was back in _prison_. Peering down at her stomach, he smiled. He could _always_ tell when Jay was kicking when she was pregnant with him, and it was no different with his little girl. He leaned down and kissed the moving spot and just sat contently rubbing it.

Feeling the warm lips, and hands on her stomach, Haley kissed him back, all the while getting lost in his warmth just like she remembered. No matter how long they were separated, they always found their way back to one another. Their love could stand up to anything that came their way, and both were willing to fight for it.

Even with her protruding stomach, they made love that night.

Carefully and slowly.

If you asked them, they would say it was magical.

Some would say it was beautiful.

He made sure he was gentle and didn't hurt her.

She made sure he knew she _wasn't_ hurt.

They savored it.

They enjoyed it.

They repeated it.

It felt good.

It felt safe.

And to them both

It felt like _home_.

* * *

Jay's eyes popped open at 7:27 Christmas Eve morning. Normally he would lay in his bed until he couldn't hold his pee any longer, but he remembered his daddy being there last night and wanted to make sure he wasn't dreaming. Sliding off his bed, Jay tucked his feet into the open mouth _Stitch_ slippers and made a dash for his parents' room. Bursting in the room, Jay climbed up on the huge bed, and immediately started to jump up and down while giggling.

"Daddy's still home, Daddy's still home! Get up daddy!" he said plopping down on his stomach after a minute of jumping. He started poking his chest, and frowned when he saw a large red mark on the bottom on his neck and a few more just above his nipple.

"What happened daddy, how did you get hurt?" he said in concern.

Nathan looked down and could feel himself actually blush. He and Haley's love making _had_ been perfect. As much as he talked about leaving his mark on _her,_ she made sure she left her mark on _him _last night.

"I'm okay buddy, don't worry, they didn't hurt at all." He said seeing Haley start to stir and turn over towards them.

"But how did they get there? Did you get hurt at your job" his eyes were wide at this, being scared of his daddy getting hurt while he was away.

Both parents, now fully alert and awake could see the worry in their sons' eyes, and didn't want to have him being scared of Nathan leaving and getting hurt while he was away.

"No Jay, I didn't get hurt at work...Ummm... mommy did it" he didn't want to tell him anything to drastic, but the only thing he could think of was to be honest.

Besides, Haley _did_ do that to him.

Jay looked over at his mother in shock. "Mommy you did that to daddy? Why?"

Haley couldn't believe that he'd told Jay that. She wasn't sure what to say after that, without lying, or telling the truth. It's not like she could say, well once daddy got really hard, I got so turned on by his moans, that I started to bite him, and I didn't want to scare you by screaming out his name, so I bit down on daddy's chest every time I needed to scream. _Hell no! _"Daddy and I were having a tickle fight, and I pinched him by mistake."

"Well you definitely won mommy, daddy looks messed up" he said laughing and hopping off the bed. "Now come on, I wanna open one present Santa and daddy bought me" he said knowing their Christmas Eve tradition.

They both thought back to the conversation they had last year. Jay had been giving a lot of though to everything at his young age, and wondered why Santa bought him gifts, and his parents didn't. Neither were sure how to answer his question of "why does a stwangor' give my pwesents' a'cause I'm good, and you and daddy don't" Being stomped once again by his little _James inherited mind_, as Nathan called it, made the parents put their names on some of the gifts, instead of just Santa Claus.

When Jay had finally run out of the room after being told to brush his teeth and wash his face, Nathan turned to Haley, his face barely and inch from hers. "Good morning beautiful. How are you and my baby feeling? Are you okay from last night?"

"Oh, we are so good. She's content and happy, and well... mommy is nice and satisfied" she said slyly smiling at him, while blushing.

"Nuh uh Haley, you can't look at me like that. It'll make me wanna do things to you that'll make _you_ wanna bite me again, and our son won't be too happy about that"

Coming around to the other side of the bed, he helped his pregnant wife out, and led her to the bathroom. "You can use it first, and then me" The gesture might have seemed simple, but to her it meant the world. Just being able to have her husband home, offering her first dibs on the bathroom because he knew her bladder couldn't handle it, made her heart burst. "Oh" he stopped her before she went in. "and Merry Christmas Eve Hales. I love you so much" he said gently kissing her lips and touching her stomach.

It_ was_ the simple things that mattered.

When they were finally finished, they made their way to the living room, and saw Jay with his hands in his lap, trying his best not to touch anything. They'd taught him that if he was too excited about touching something, then he had to put his hands in his lap, and count.

"It's about time mommy"

"Hey!" Haley said in defense. "What about it's about time _daddy_? He could have taken a long time"

"No, it's the baby making you take a long time, like when you walked reallllly slow at the store yesterday with Uncle Lucas. It took forever daddy" He didn't see anything degrading about what he was saying, it was the truth.

"Alright little boy, you want your gifts or not? I didn't even get my good morning kisses" she said looking at her son.

"Sorry mommy" He ran over to Haley and climbed up on her lap, and rubbed his nose against hers, before giving her a loud smacking kiss on the lips.

After watching Jay rip open three presents and start to play with his toys, Nathan gathered the wrapping paper together and put it in the black trash bag that Haley was holding open.

"So baby, did you like your gifts?" Jay heard his mother ask

"Yes, and daddy got to come home."

Nathan came over to Jay and lifted him in his arms. "Listen Jay-Man, I know you asked Santa to let me come home, but I gotta go back to work in a few hours"

"But why, you've been there forever daddy'

"I know, but I'm not finished working yet. But you know what? I'm gonna be able to come home more often and see you and mommy"

At her husbands' words, Haley's head snapped up and eyed her husband, that being the first time he'd spoken those words.

"But I don't want you to go back" he said coming close to tearing up.

Haley thought about the surprise she'd had later on for Jay, and figured right now would be the best time to give it to him. "Hey baby, mommy has one more gift for you"

Walking into her bedroom, she came back out carrying an envelope in her hand.

"Now I don't' want you to get too excited because we can't get her now. We can pick up your present in a few months, but in here is a picture"

Opening the envelope, she pulled out a picture of a brown Labrador puppy.

It only took about two seconds for Jay to start grinning at the picture and hugging it. "Why can't we get her now mommy? I want the puppy today"

"Well, she's just a baby Jay. She has to stay with her mommy for a little while and when she gets a little bigger, she can come home with us. Do you wanna name her?"

Thinking for only a minute or two, Jay looked up at his mommy wearing that _signature_ Scott smirk. "I wanna name her Pwarker mommy, just like my fwavorite Spwurs player"

Haley rolled her eyes and sent Nathan a playful glare at brainwashing her son to love basketball.

"Can I put the picture in my room mommy" After receiving a nod from her, he ran back into his room with the picture and a few other toys.

"I think he likes the picture more than anything else he got" she said reaching down to pick up more paper. She avoided looking at her husband having not discussed the puppy with him. She was prepared for a scolding he was sure to give her for not telling him about their _other_ new addition she was planning for. She just knew she couldn't disappoint Jason on Christmas.

When she turned around to where Nathan was, she was surprised to find him standing close behind her with a rectangular jewelry box in his hands, just a few inches from her face. Lifting the lid off, she saw a beautiful heart-shaped white gold bracelet with two charms dangling from it

Engraved on one were the initials "J M S" the second one reading "M J S" She rolled her eyes and looked up at him "MJS huh? I noticed that in the nursery as well…. You must really think I'm gonna cave and name my daughter _that_ don't you?"

"You know you love the name Hales, just give in already.. and it's perfect, the opposite of Jay's name, just accept it and move on" he said smirking. There really was no turning back now.

"Thank you for the bracelet. Despite these initials, it's beautiful"

"I just wanted to do something nice for you" he said welcoming her lips to his.

"Now I do have another present for you, but I want you to wait until you get back to open it."

They spent the rest of the morning laughing, playing and watching one of Jay's many movies. Only having an hour left, he was glad that Jay passed out during the movie. He figured he would, knowing his son never got up that early without taking an afternoon nap. Once he laid him down in his room, Haley pulled Nathan into their bedroom and once again made love to her husband.

She couldn't let him leave that evening without feeling him inside of her one more time.

Correction, two more times.

She needed that connection with him, and needed it to last.

And it did.

But then the pain started to settle in once again when it was time for him to go.

* * *

Haley held onto Nathan's hand as they sat in his SUV that was parked in their garage. After making love a few times, they shared a shower, got dressed and waited out in the car until it was time for him to leave. Making out in the car and holding each other seemed to make the stress in their lives go away, even if just for a little while.

"He's gonna be so upset Hales." Nathan said kissing her bottom lip.

"No, we need to just let him sleep. I'd rather you be gone when he wakes up, trust me it's not that easy leaving him. He's getting so big and he'll try to coax you into staying longer and you can't." she leaned into his chest more, not wanting him to leave herself.

"Just one more month, and she'll be here baby" he said touching her stomach where his child was sleeping soundly.

"But will you be here?"

It was quiet but he'd heard it. After talking about the comment he'd made to Jay, Haley found out that in a few weeks, the men would be allowed to come home on the weekends.

"Well since we've been there so long, sergeant said we can be home on the weekends. It's hard on a lot of the other guys that had to come from further away but I'm so lucky you guys are so close. I'll be here Haley. Every weekend, I promise." He said kissing her lips softly.

"Good, that means you need to come on Friday night, you hear that baby girl?" she said poking at her enlarged stomach.

She looked up and saw Nathan staring at her with love and adoration written all over his face, and couldn't help but lean in and kiss him hard on the lips. Slowing down a bit, she ran her hands over his head and left small kisses on his lips. Small tears also ran down her cheeks. Leaning back she laid her head on his shoulder for a minute.

"Thank you so much for doing everything to be here today. It means everything to me, and I love you so much. Make sure you call me when you get back and settled in, oh and don't forget your present."

"I will, and I love you too. Be careful okay, and tell Jay I love him and I'll talk to you both later"

After one more kiss, the two parted and Nathan drove off with Haley tearfully waving goodbye until his car was out of eyesight.

* * *

When Nathan arrived back to his room, he fell on the bed in relief. He had some trouble at the gate, but was finally able to get through. He was worried because it was fifteen minutes until they would be checking his room. He unpacked quickly and stuffed his bag back under the bed.

On his nightstand was the gift that Haley sent home with him from her. He could tell that it was wrapped in an oatmeal box and he smiled at his wife's quirkiness. Every time a special occasion came around, she'd wrap the everyday normal presents in a regular boxes, but special gifts like the watch she'd gotten him for their anniversary or the first sonogram pictures of Jay she'd wrap in food boxes. She always said that they only used the boxes for food and then they'd get tossed out, so she wanted to make them feel useful and special.

He was quick to sit the box on the floor when he heard the single knock on the door, and saw it immediately open and reveal his sergeant.

"Dinner's thirty minutes early, so make sure you're there, four thirty sharp"

"Can I ask why so early sir?"

"In two weeks you get to go home on weekends, until then we'll work overtime and twice as hard. Four-thirty."

"Yes sir"

Once he left out, Nathan reached over and pulled open the present. Only his wife would use twenty pieces of tape on his gift as a challenge for him. When he finally got it open, he was in awe of what he saw. He reached in carefully and hugged his wife's most prize possession from her childhood. He picked up the letter that accompanied the gift and read it aloud, almost hearing her voice.

_Nathan My Only Love, _

_ I hope you're lying in your bed right now, hugging the gift I gave you. I know it's a bit cheesy, and childish, but that's why you love me right? It's temporary until you can come home and hug me. But it's also for another reason. You know that what you hold in your hands knows all my secrets, and the deepest desires of my heart. I talk to it all the time as you know and it knows every aspect of feeling that I've ever felt. I've trusted this bear with everything and now I give him to you promising that you're all that I trust now and all that I need anytime I don't feel like myself. You're everything to me Nathan and I want you to know that I don't take that for granted. So you keep him, that way I know that my secrets and feelings are always safe with you._

_ Always and forever, _

_ Haley _

He couldn't describe the love he felt for his wife at that very moment. Reaching for his phone, he pressed the send button twice calling his wife, and as if she knew he was about to call, she answered on the second ring.

"Hello?" she spoke into the phone.

"You sure you won't be lonely without Mr. Waffles?'

"I'll be fine. Did you like it?" she said hesitantly.

"I loved it. Thank you. What are you doing? Where's Jay?"

"He's with Brooke and Luke and my sisters. They went to take the boys to ride their power wheels somewhere"

"It's cold as hell outside and snow's on the ground"

"Oh I know, and trust me I gave them a good threat if he gets sick. So it's fine, they're dropping him back off later tonight."

"So you still didn't answer my question, what are you doing?"

"Oh, I'm watching Crazy/Beautiful and wearing the most comfortable clothes ever.

"Which one of my shirts are you wearing, and which pair of my boxers are you wearing?" he asked knowing his wife.

"Your gray and black Spurs shirt, and your blue sexy beast boxers that I bought you"

"I bet you and my baby look like a million bucks."

"Well, I feel like a million bucks"

"Alright, catch the kiss woman" he said playfully blowing her a kiss and preparing to get off the phone.

"Muah, muah, muah! Aww I love this movie. Carlos is so hot and sweet once they get back together. Remember when you find out her mom really died, man I hate her dad. I know you hate him too baby"

"Well I guess, I mean if the guy was like abandoning his daughter or..." Haley had watched the movie so many times but he never bothered to really get into it.

"No, not you, my mini me hates him"

"How do you know she hates him?" he said loving how his wife came up with things sometimes.

"Because she kicked when I said it. Anyway we miss you already, and we want you to come home and hold us, and play with us all day. Do you realize how bored I am being here all day long? Gosh! I hate maternity leave, I miss going to work"

Nathan could _hear_ her pouting.

"Yea but think about it this way, you get to organize all her clothes and make sure everything is ready for when she comes. Plus, if you were at work, then you know Brooke would be sneaking over adding every piece of pink clothing she could find to her wardrobe."

"I do enjoy organizing her things, especially now that my wonderful husband put together her nursery. I still can't believe how beautiful it is! I really love it." she said after a minute of thinking. "Baby, do you think I take you guys for granted ever?"

_Uh oh_, he thought. His wife could be watching something one minute happy as ever, then somehow connect it to her life and come up with crazy ideas and accusations.

"Where is this coming from Hales?"

"Well, it was like her dad took her for granted, he didn't really appreciate her and didn't care, and when she was with Carlos, she took Maddie for granted for sure. I mean she like ran off while she was talking to her and everything just to go kiss up on him. Oh gosh! Do I do that to Brooke? Maybe I should call her..."

"Haley stop!" he knew he had to end her rambling before she hung up on him and started to cry. "You do not take any of us for granted okay? You gotta stop comparing us to some crazy teenagers. I know it's your favorite, and you love it, but it's not real. You don't take us for granted, you're a great person Haley, and I love you."

"Okay, I love you too. When can you come home on the weekends?" she had to be reassured of this.

"In two weeks"

"Good, cause I'll go crazy if I don't see you anytime soon."

"Did you have a nap once I left? Are you tired?"

"I think you know me a little too well. I could definitely use a nap"

"Why don't you take a nap, and call me when you get up. I love you okay?"

"I love you too"

He could already tell she was drifting off to sleep. Hanging up his phone, he put his shoes back on and headed off to dinner, knowing he would be in much need of a nap when he got back. Walking towards the dining hall, Nathan Scott held his head high proud of himself for giving his family the Christmas Eve they deserved. In his gut he could feel that things were really starting to look up for once in what seemed like a long time.

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**Hey guys! How was it? What did you think of the flashbacks/throwbacks? I can't wait to hear what you guys think. Next chapter coming soon. Thanks for the alerts and favorites that I've received, they've truly made writing so much easier and made me wanna write so much more! Smooches!**

**Jennifer**


	14. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

**Hey guys! So I hoped that you enjoyed the last chapter and I hope that you will like this chapter!**

* * *

**Visitors**

**December 26**

Haley sat up in bed and reached over to get her vibrating phone. She didn't know why it was on vibrate, and figured that Jay must have changed it while he played with it on her last doctors' appointment. Before flipping it open, she glanced at the time on the clock that sat on her table and was bewildered at the fact that someone would call her so early. Yesterday had been so much fun, but also draining as well. Dan and Deb had come over first thing in the morning to open present with herself and Jay, and later Lucas, Brooke and Drew joined in as well exchanging gifts.

They were all shocked to hear that Nathan had been home the day before and as much as they all wished they could have seen him, their jealousy was instantly washed away when they saw the glow not only present on Haley's face but also on Jays'. The small boy talked nonstop about seeing his daddy and spending Christmas Eve with him, and everyone was so happy for him. Haley was nearly in tears just seeing how happy her little boy was.

It was a little after four when Dan and Deb packed up their car and headed back home. Knowing Brooke and Lucas wanted to get their home back to normal, they took Drew with them, planning on seeing them later that night when they arrived. Haley laughed at the grandparents once they were gone knowing they had no idea what they'd gotten themselves into offering to drive hours with a four year old. Jay's Christmas excitement hadn't died down until much later that night before Haley put him to bed, and she welcomed sleep with open arms.

"Who has the nerve to call me this early" she sassed out sleepily into the receiver.

"Oh wake up and come open the door dork" the voice was immediately recognized.

"What are you talking about? Peyton go away, and call me back when I won't want to kill you"

"Listen, me and Jake are outside on your porch freezing our ass off, so you need to get your butt out of bed and let us in."

Shutting her phone, she slipped on her robe and made her way to the front door. She wouldn't believe it until she saw it with her own two eyes. Jake and Peyton were here in San Antonio? Her city? Yanking the door open, she saw the dark blonde loose curls sitting atop her friends' petite body that was covered in a leather jacket while her husband stood wearing an apologetic smile. She heard the small woman let out a screech and was immediately smothered in a bone crushing hug.

"Let go you crazy morning person. Help your husband or something."

She stepped aside and let them both in.

"Come in, let me go look presentable, take a seat, and Peyton do _not_ wake Jay up, he's asleep in his room."

She walked down the hall into her room, knowing they knew their way around her house. Besides, they were family. While Jake took out some of the presents they brought, Peyton excitedly strutted down the hall to wake up her not-so-much-of-a-morning-person 'nephew' despite Haley's warning.

She walked into the room, and smiled, remembering when she painted the room herself for the young boy. She sat on the edge of his bed, and ran her fingers through his long silky hair.

"Jason, wake up. It's time to wake up buddy"

"But I'm still sleepy, where's mommy?" he said looking up at the familiar face of his Aunt Peyton.

"She's getting dressed, me and uncle Jake bought you some Christmas presents."

He simply looked up at her and gave her the look she dreaded. It was the same one that Nathan would give her when she was 'too excited' and he didn't feel like putting up with her. It was the 'you're not gonna give up are you' look. He climbed off his bed and didn't say a word as he walked out of the room leaving her sitting there.

"Damn that Scott charm" she muttered once he was out of the room.

A few minutes later, Haley walked towards the couple carrying Jason in her arms. He had gone to use the bathroom, and then climbed up on her bed fully intending on going back to sleep, but had no suck luck.

"Hales! You're gonna kill yourself girl, give him to me. Do you always carry him around during the day?" Peyton scolded out.

"No, he's usually still asleep, but _someone_ woke him up. I'm happy you're here, really I am, but _why_ are you here? Like in San Antonio the day after Christmas?"

"Well, Jake just got done touring with John Mayer, and Colbie Caillat, and we were going to take a small vacation. Well I've been doing so good at the record label that my boss wanted me to come down here and give me a chance on running most of what comes out of this office. Like we have our major one in LA, but we have a sister site based here, and the president of the label quit, and they have another one but she's not used to having such a big job, so I'm basically bringing her up to speed with everything the job entails since she's from such a smaller label. It's for a few weeks and it's not like there's a guarantee that this will promote me anywhere, but it's such a great opportunity for me either way!"

Haley couldn't believe that she basically said all that in one breath, and had to take a minute to let it all digest.

"So how long will you be in town for?" she was still sort of confused.

"Maybe two months, give or take a few weeks" she said smiling.

"Oh my gosh! You could be here when she's born? Where are you staying?"

"Well the label has us at the Marriott downtown so we will be there, but we'll also just stay here too some days. I think it'll be fun, Brooke can come over and it'll be just like in college."

"What she means to say Haley is that we're booked already downtown, but if it's okay with you, we'd love to stay here some nights, especially when the baby comes and help out however we can."

"Yea, what he said. Can we Hales?"

"You're about as bad as Brooke is. Of course you guys can stay whenever you want. But as always there are rules to living under my roof, especially for the two of you. NO sex within mine, or Jay's earshot, or if I'm not asleep. If I'm not getting any, neither are you. No crazy music and dancing for Jake. I know how you are Peyton, I lived next door to you for five semesters. No walking around in the middle of the night, it's just creepy, and no walking around nude."

"Okay, deal, but I must tell you the nude thing is really comfortable."

"Whatever weirdo. I'm so happy you guys are here. So my first favor of helping out since you mentioned it, one of the gifts I'd gotten for Jason and Nathan were tickets to the Spurs game in a few weeks, and Luke isn't free that night and I clearly..."

"I would love to take Jay to the game. We'll have our fun, and you guys can do your strange girl things"

"Thanks Jake "she said finally being able to hug him. Jake was one of her closest guy friends in college. Peyton was the first of them to actually find their Mr. Right, and they had been together since sophomore year in college, and married three weeks after graduation.

"Hales, he won't talk to me" she heard Peyton call from where Jay was lying down on the couch.

"That's because he's like his father, and is not a morning person. I told you not to wake him. Come here baby"

She went over and sat on the couch beside him, and he crawled into her lap and laid partially on her stomach ad the rest on her chest. Using his hand, Jay felt around his mommy's stomach for the baby, knowing it would put him in better moods.

"Did you find her yet?" he heard his mom ask him.

He nodded his head and started to push harder on the spot where he felt her.

"Good morning. Wake up. It's me your big bwroda Jason. She kicked mommy!"

He bent down and kissed the spot he saw and felt moving.

"I know! She missed you last night. You hungry, you want some Lucky Charms?"

"Yes, but can you make me some eggs mommy, Sissy wants them too"

"Oh she does huh?" she said while walking in the kitchen and starting on the eggs. Her son was simple, so it took no time to crack open one egg and add a little pepper to it.

"Yep, can I call daddy?"

After being told he could once he ate, he ran back into his room and came back a few minutes later carrying his new favorite photo.

"Aunt Peyton, look at my puppy" he said shoving the picture in her face.

"Hales, you got him a puppy? She said not noticing any sign of a dog before.

"Well we're gonna get her in two months, she's still too small to be away from her mother. Jay go put that up and come eat. And walk Jay before you fall."

He ran back into the room and once he placed the picture on the dresser, his mothers' words registered in his head. He peeked down the hall and got down on all four and crawled to the living room. Looking around he saw his mom putting eggs on his plate, and wondered if she actually saw him running down the hall. He walked up the two steps that led up to the kitchen and climbed into his chair innocently.

Coming to stand in front of him, Haley placed his plate of eggs down in front of him before taking her hand and lifting his small chin upward to look at her.

"I saw you running back in your room Jase"

"I'm sorry mommy, but if you stay mad at me, there's a good chance I'll develop a studdor' p,p,p,please don't do that to me"

He stood up in the chair and pulled her face down to his level and kissed her loudly on the lips, followed by a huge smirk. She hated when Nathan taught him that stupid line. She realized he constantly taught their son how to basically get away with murder. She knew that was like one of her favorite lines to use on _him, _and now he'd used it against her with their son.

"You're too smooth for me. I'm not mad at you, but walk Jay I mean it. You're gonna bust your head open when you fall one day."

She patted his bottom and he plopped down in his chair and ate his eggs. Wanting to make sure her guest had everything they needed, she made her way towards their room, but stopped short when she heard them giggling an obviously making out.

Besides Brooke and Lucas, not too many people had been around her long enough to make her jealous, but hearing the two love birds down the hall was enough to make her really miss her husband.

"Hey if you guys want any breakfast, help yourself"

She walked back into her room and picked up the phone, dialing the familiar number.

_Crap_ she muttered under her breath.

This was the first time that she called his phone and heard it go straight to voicemail since he'd left. It took everything in her to not cry while she left him a message to call her back when he got the chance. Hanging up, she felt herself start to hyperventilate, and begin to slowly breath in and out, not wanting to stress herself out. Once she was calm, she picked up the phone and searched through her contacts before calling Tonya's house.

Unlike Brooke, or Peyton, she knew that Tanya would first let her get out everything she was feeling, _then_ try to calm her and get her to think rationally. That's why she loved her so much. Not that her best friends didn't know or understand her, but with Tanya's husband also being in the army and having been sent away, she understood where Haley was coming from. She would usually spill everything to her, and Tanya would respond with a "been there, done that girl" and would gladly give her some great advice.

Once Tanya answered her phone, Haley went on to tell her everything; starting from her unexpected guest, to Jay's _Nathan-like_ comment, to her getting very jealous and missing her husband. As usual, Tanya let her vent, and then calmed her down when she started to cry and get upset again. She also let her in on a few secrets like whenever they would be heading out to the field, there were many times when the men had no idea and it would be a surprise drill. So there was a possibility that Nathan was out there and wasn't able to give any prior warning. It wasn't that she didn't know these things, but Tonya knew they'd reassure her nonetheless.

Before they could get any further, her other line beeped, and she glanced at the caller ID to see her husband's name flashing. Quickly ending the call with her friend, she switched over.

"Nathan?"

"Hey baby, what's going on? I got your message, you okay?"

"I guess"

"You guess? Haley, what's going on"

Haley started to tell Nathan exactly what she told Tonya just a few minutes ago; everything from her new house guest, to her getting jealous of them. Towards the end of her telling him about Tonya's information on the random field runs, she'd finally broke down crying.

It was easy for Nathan to tell that his wife hadn't gotten enough sleep, and would clearly be down for her afternoon nap a little bit early today. With the baby up randomly throughout the night, Haley always had to take an afternoon nap, and he was glad that Jay was always content on watching a movie with a snack next to his sleeping mother.

"I'm sorry about all this Hales. We got called in the field, and I'm not gonna have my phone on unless we're at a rest spot. But whenever we do stop, I'm gonna make sure I call you, then just turn it back off so it'll last."

"I just miss you Nathan. Like I really miss you right now, and it's hard without you here. I mean, I don't know what I expected, but it wasn't this. I don't even know what to do anymore Nathan. I was thinking about only being a couple of weeks away from her due date and I can't imagine going through the first weeks let alone months with you only here on the weekends."

"I know, and I'm sorry. I know this is killing you Hales, it's killing me too. I can barely sleep at night, and I miss Jason so damn much. I never wanted to be away from you or him, hell it's like he doesn't even have a father anymore"

"Hey now don't say that Nathan, you're his father!" she hated when he doubted himself, and didn't want him being away to make it even worse. "I know it, you know it, and more importantly, he knows it. He wanted me to call _his daddy_ after breakfast. You mean the world to him Nate, so don't ever think that you don't matter to him and that you're letting him down. Just like your love for him is unconditional, well so is his love for you"

"I know I'm his father Hales, it was stupid to say that."

"It's okay"

"So how's my baby girl?" he said changing the subject slightly.

"Good, really active. Jay woke her up this morning, and it was so cute. He's been calling her Sissy lately and it's so precious watching him talk to her."

"Well when I come home next weekend, I will see it for myself, and I can't wait to see you guys'

"Me either. So I took the liberty of making a list of things I want to do every time you come home."

"Really? Well I hope at least half of that list involves you being naked and on top of me"

"NATHAN!" she gasped out looking around as if someone was right there listening. He loved that she seemed so innocent to everyone else, but he knew the truth. His wife was anything but innocent when it came to happenings in their bedroom. On their honeymoon, he'd given her the name _Wildcat _after noticing all the scratches he had on his back.

"Hales!" he mimicked her. "You gonna purr for me _Wildcat_?"

Before her blush set deep into her cheeks, she could hear a few men in the background laughing and cheering her husband on. "Nathan, stop that! I don't want you friends thinking I'm some horny freak, that's having dirty phone sex with her husband"

"But that's exactly what we're doing Hales, besides, phone sex is so hot"

"Oh yea? And how would you know that?" She said knowing that she had _never_ had phone sex before in her life, and she sure as hell never planned on it.

"Ummm... it was um, a joke Hales." He said not wanting to upset his pregnant, tired, _and _hormonal wife. "Tell me what you really have on the list"

"Well, we could take Jay to the park, then maybe out to dinner, and once he's in bed, I was thinking a nice hot bubble bath. Just some family time together, without stressing for time and everything"

That sounded perfect to Nathan and he couldn't wait for next Friday. "I can't wait to do all those things. It's perfect Hales"

She could actually hear the smile in his voice and wished she was there to kiss him.

"How long will you be out in the field" she said wondering how low his battery now was.

"Until Thursday morning, we head back at four am"

"Then you should save your battery. I'm gonna rest for a while but you should call tonight before I put Jay to bed"

"Alright babe I will. Give Jay a kiss for me"

"I will, I love you"

"Love you too _Wildcat_." He said smirking.

"Wipe that cocky smirk off your face Scott. You're not really Mr. Hotshot, and all of your buddies are probably picturing me naked right now"

_Click_

She laughed when she could hear him scoff right before she hung up the phone knowing that got under his skin.

Going to peek in on her son, Haley opened her bedroom door and stopped short when she saw a note taped to it.

**_Hales, took Jay out with us to see the studio. We'll see you later, so relax – Jake and Peyton_**

She loved her friends.

Going into her closet, she hung her robe back up and looked up when something caught her eye. She pulled the semi-heavy box down from it's shelve and opened it to reveal her college year books. Taking two of them back to her bed, she got settled in before opening one and reliving some college memories. Flipping through the pages, she stopped on one picture that immediately made her blood boil. It was of her and one of her ex-friends that lived on her hall for three years.

Tracy Baker and her met in her freshman seminar class, and were happy to find out they were on the same hall. No one knew why she was ever friends with Tracy, but Haley always saw the good in people. Everyone knew that Tracy slept around and went out with any and every boy that she saw. With her blonde hair, and long legs, the guys were usually lined up outside their window throwing rocks, and waiting to be picked.

After a couple of real crushes and broken hearts, Haley went to Tracy and actually got her to change her ways. She wasn't sure how she'd gotten through to her, but she seemed to change over night, refusing to date just any guy and actually started a real relationship with this one guy in her class.

**_****FLASHBACK****_**

_Although they were off campus for senior year, Haley still introduced all her friends that lived on campus to Nathan. She was glad that they all got along with Nathan, but was weary of letting him around Tracy. She'd heard that her friend had slipped back into her old ways and was always hunting for a new prey. _

_Brooke and Haley had gone to a party the night that Lucas and Nathan flew in and were hanging out with Peyton, and Jake when Nathan noticed that Haley wasn't feeling good._

"_Are you sure you're okay?" he asked concerned._

"_Yea, just give me a minute" She had Brooke and Peyton accompany her to the restroom and really hoped they could help her.  
_

"_What's wrong Hales? You okay, you've been weird all night"_

"_Hold that thought" she said before going in the stall to use the bathroom._

_Shit! The blonde and brunette looked at each other immediately knowing what was going on._

"_Do either of you have a tampon or anything?" she said praying no one else was in there. This would never stop being embarassing._

"_Sorry Hales, we don't. Do you need us to run and get you something?" Peyton said after Brooke shook her head. It was only last month Haley's cycle had her vomiting for hours and in bed for two days._

"_No, but screw living in a dorm room." A few minutes later, she reappeared in front of them, and washed her hands._

"_You sure, we can come with you" Brooke was worried the last time Haley had gotten really sick no matter how much she assured her it happened every few months._

"_I promise its fine, if its gets bad, I'll call you, I promise. I'm just gonna head back. I've had cramps all night, and they're not going away. I'm a week early! I need to stop hanging around with damn girls, I always know my cycle" _

_She hated that her night with Nathan was cut short._

_Walking back out to the party, she took her boyfriend by the hand and led him to an empty hallway._

"_Babe, I'm just gonna head home. I'm not feeling very well, and I'm gonna get to bed. But you can stay here with Luke and Jake if you want"_

"_Hell no! I'll come with you, what's wrong? I can take care of you Hales"_

"_Nathan... I umm... I just started my period." Her cheeks turned a deep red before she could even attempt to finish. "I have serious cramps, but I'll be okay, I'm pretty used to them. You should stay and have fun. You can even drink beer without me getting nauseous from it."_

_He laughed at that. She was such a lightweight and could barely stand the smell of beer, let alone drink it. He was also glad that she changed the subject from her being on her period. They hadn't gotten to the point where she could make a comment about her menstrual cycle and him be comfortable with it._

"_Well are you sure? There's nothing I can do?"_

"_Nope... I'm gonna get my heating pad, open a can of soup, take some Midol and pray to God I'm not bloated when I see you tomorrow"_

_Leaning down, he kissed her lips gently, and hugged her goodbye after giving her the keys to her car._

**_****END OF FLASHBACK****_**

Haley ran her hands through her head, and made herself stop there. Those were memories she couldn't dig up and deal with while she was so hormonal and alone. Slamming the book shut, she threw it on the floor beside her bed, and laid down, knowing that she definitely needed a nap after traveling down memory lane.

_A memory lane she wanted to forget forever_

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**A/N: Okay... so I hoped that you enjoyed that... I'll tell you... .I had to do a lot of thinking and planning in this chapter. Things that will happened later were expected and understandable with the story being about me... but now that it's Naley... there were things that had to be talked about and thought of, before I could even think of continuing. But don't worry... I won't destroy anyone or make you guys hate me... YET! But I really hope that you enjoyed this and that you will review! Jen!**


	15. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

**Hi everyone. There's no veering down a false path or anything, so don't' worry about that. This chapter gets straight to the point. Anyway, this chapter isn't named after a song really because I couldn't think of a song to fit it... but there are lyrics of a beautiful song throughout the chapter. I hope you guys will enjoy this.**

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**Chapter 13**

**January 5th **

_She's got a baby inside_

_And holds her belly tight, all through the night_

Haley felt as though she had topped Jay's day off with a cherry. First, they were both surprised with a trip the Texas Christmas Lights Fair with the Jagelski's and the Turners (Matt, Tonya, and Logan). It was the last weekend before the Holiday festivities would be in place and she really wanted Jay to see it. The two kids had a blast riding the small rides and the guys loved getting on the bigger ones. They tried showing off their basketball skills and win the girls some gifts, which in return made Haley miss her husband. Nathan could have _easily_ won her a huge stuff animal without even trying. He was amazing at basketball and would have happily gloated to the other guys about it.

The girls, well at least Haley's favorite part was the food. Every since talk of the fair in town began, she'd been craving a turkey leg, and that was the first thing she bought when they'd arrived. Her craving caused Jake to get punched in the arm by his wife once he'd seen the turkey leg after five minutes. _You killed it_, Haley remembered him saying, eyes wide in disbelief. That only had her in tears, and saying how disgusting she must've looked.

To finish off their exciting day, Jay was invited to sleep in the big bed with his mommy that night. She wasn't sure what had gotten into her, but she had refused to sleep without her four year old that night, and was glad that he was still at that snuggly age.

_ Just so she knows, she's sleeping so_

_Safely to keep, her growing_

Haley gently pulled Jay over a little bit, when she felt him move further away from her body. She was nearly awake from the cramps she was having, and tried to hold off waking up for as long as she could. Feeling the bleeding in between her thighs, Haley grimaced. She hated when she had her period and was definitely too drained to get up and take some medicine.

Before she knew it, her cramps had gotten worse, and it was then that she began to gain consciousness and analyze all her thoughts. _She was pregnant._ The flow that was coming between her thighs was one she shouldn't be experiencing in her condition.

Sitting up quickly, Haley clamped a hand over her mouth, trying to hold back the sobs that instantly escaped her lips.

_What was wrong with her baby?_

Lifting the comforter, she saw cream colored sheets, stained with her blood. Flashes of the last time she had been awaken to see blood covering her bottom half entered her mind; she had miscarried. Squeezing her eyes closed, she opened them seconds later willing the red wet stain to disappear. Strangled sobs left her mouth once again, as she started trembling and pushing the comforter from her body.

Jay, who had been curled up under her, was now awake and rubbing his eyes in confusion.

"Mommy?" He could see the tears running down her cheeks and wondered if she just missed his daddy again like before.

Haley tried to be quick and unnoticeable when she started to pull the blanket back up but wasn't fast enough and Jay's eyes instantly grew at the sight of her blood.

"Jay, go get Aunt Peyton and Uncle Jake, and tell them mommy said to come here quick. Okay? Run baby"

He raced down the hall and was very grateful for the sensor night lights that lined the long hall to the guest room. He burst in the room to find Peyton sitting up. She was a light sleeper and was already awake when she heard the small feet against the wooden floor.

"Jason, what's wrong, why are you up?" Jake said sitting up as well

"Mommy has blood on her bed. She said to come get you."

The two adults rushed down the hall and into Haley's room to find her slowly getting out of bed.

"Hales, what's going on?" Peyton said coming to stand beside her and hold her up.

"I'm bleeding really bad Peyton. I need to go to the hospital. Something's not right with her." Haley looked over towards Jay who was standing with his back against the wall looking at her completely terrified. "Mommy's okay baby, don't be scared. He… he needs new pants on" she said seeing the red stain on her son's pajama pants.

Peyton knew that Nathan would never forgive her if something happened to his wife, so she immediately snapped into action.

"Okay, come on. Jake, you help Haley to the car. Let her sit on a towel. They're in the linen closet next to Jay's room. I'll get Jay and be there in a second."

"Make sure he has on a coat Peyton" she said concerned for her son. She looked back at him as Jake lead her out, and hated the terrified look on his face when Peyton scooped him up in her arms.

"Just get to the car, I have it. Sit her in the back Jake"

_Oh when she'll open her eyes_

_There'll be no surprise_

While the two walked towards the garage, Peyton put a coat, shoes and a hat on Jay once she changed him pants. She also grabbed the small blanket that was on the bottom of his bed before leaving the room. Going back into Haley's room, she packed her small duffel with a change of clothes, extra under clothes, and finally grabbed her cell phone that had been charging on her nightstand. Picking up Jay, she finally made her way out to the car that was started and warming up.

She buckled Jay into his seat, and carefully climbed over Haley to sit in between the two. She knew Haley wouldn't want her son to see her in so much pain, but also knew she wouldn't want him in the front seat of the car. All Peyton could think to do was rub Jay's head while she held tightly to Haley's hand comforting her.

* * *

It didn't take long for Jay to fall back asleep, and in only a few minutes time, they were pulling up to the hospital. Switching places once again, Jake came around to the back and helped Haley in, while Peyton parked the car and brought in Jay along with the bag.

By the time Peyton made it into the hospital, they were working on Haley to stop the bleeding. They were also giving her oxygen as a precaution. When Haley saw Peyton and Jay come towards her, she tried her best to stop the flowing tears from her cheeks, but wasn't successful. Jay, now awake, saw his mommy crying, and in return started to cry himself, not sure what was going on and as much as Peyton wanted to get him away from the situation, she needed to find out what was going on for when she made the dreaded phone call to Nathan.

"Is my mommy okay? Why is she crying?" he asked. They were walking towards the room she was now in. One hour after arriving at the hospital Haley was finally sent up to the Labor and Delivery wing as a precaution. Her doctor was on call tonight and had come down to check on Haley and administer meds and a few test on the baby and herself.

"Don't worry buddy, her tummy just hurts her a little that's all" To be honest, she really wasn't sure what to tell Jay.

Jake, seeing that his wife was struggling, came over and took Jay from her.

"Hey, Haley I'm sure needs to talk with you, we're gonna go to the bathroom really fast." He knew the boy had to use it, and figured it would be the perfect, albeit small distraction.

A few minutes later, Peyton walked towards Haley's room, and thanked the doctor and nurse that passed her on their way out. She thought Haley had to be sleeping not hearing anything, but once she rounded the small corner, she could see her friend silently weeping.

"I ... I need to call... Na...Nathan. I have to tell... I have to tell him what the doctor's saying." she chocked on a sob not being able to finish.

"What did they say Haley?" Peyton pushed on

Haley took a few deep breaths, and placed the breathing mask back over her nose trying to calm down, and spoke a minute later. "Early on in the pregnancy she explained that I have an Incompetent Cervix meaning my cervix isn't able to withstand the pressure of the uterus. It was damaged some when I had Jay and there was always a possibility of this but I hadn't found out until a few weeks ago."

"Does Nathan know?" Peyton didn't know what to think, and could only think about making the necessary phone calls.

"I didn't want to worry him with something that was just a possibility, so I never even mentioned it" Haley hung her head in shame and guilt.

"So is it happening now? Wouldn't your cervix dilating feel like contractions?" She didn't know much about giving birth, but Brooke's details on how much she hated giving birth gave her an insight.

"Yes my cervix is dilating, but instead of pain I started bleeding." Haley had read everything she could find on the subject when her OB mentioned it to her just in case.

Looking at the IV in Haley's hand, Peyton moved closer towards her friend "What's the IV for, are you in pain?" She reached for her hand and squeezed it in reassurance.

"No, not in pain, it's a medicine. Tocolytic therapy, it's to help stop the uterine contractions, but there's a high risk that they won't stop… Why can't I have a healthy pregnancy Peyton?" Haley whispered out as tears quickly poured from her brown eyes. She felt broken inside and like a failure. "I do everything right but it's always something, what's wrong with me"

Before Peyton had the chance to comfort her, the door opened and a woman in her early forties walked in, sent a smile their way and slapped on a pair of white gloves. After being reassured by Haley that Peyton could stay in the room, she checked Haley's monitors before doing a vaginal check.

There weren't many seconds that passed before she looked up at Haley with sorrowful eyes and spoke softly. "Haley it'll soon be an hour since we gave you the Tocolytic and things aren't slowing down. You're still dilating, there's also more spotting. Now baby's heart rate has dropped just a little, definitely nothing to be concerned about, but I'd rather not take any chances and I'd like to get your prepared to start pushing when the time comes. You're just over thirty-five weeks which is pretty good, just a full week away from being considered full term. You said your first was a week late, and each pregnancy is different. Now we knows she's not head down so I would like to try to get her to turn, but that's a decision you will have to make. This is not something I can just do, it's your decision."

Haley knew exactly what she was referring to. _External Cephalic Version._ Brooke had it done with Drew and it hurt like hell. The doctor would apply pressure to your stomach while manipulating the baby to turn head down. Reading the information on the procedure, Haley saw that there were also risks that would lead to an immediate C-section.

The doctor continued to explain to Haley what all would happen and what they would do next if things didn't go as planned. Haley voiced her fears and concerns while tears fell from her eyes, but had enough reassurance from her doctor that she completely trusted.

"If anything goes wrong and we have to do an emergency C-section, we will have everything prepped just in case, you'll be in the operating room, and Haley from the second the incision is made your baby will be out within four minutes tops."

When the doctor left the room, telling Haley to call the nurses' station when she made her decision, Peyton looked up from the texts she had been sending Jake and waited for her friend to share her thoughts. "Well"

"I understand everything she said, I just really need to call Nathan and let him know what's going on.. I need to hear his voice Peyton."

"Are you sure _you_ want to? I mean I can talk to him Hales, I just don't want you working yourself up, you heard what she said about relaxing. I know you need him here, but if it were me I'd be screaming at him to get here." Peyton didn't want her to overwork herself, and wasn't sure how the conversation would go. She knew that Haley would beg for him to come home, though she knew that he couldn't.

"Yea, I won't stay on too long I just can't do this without him knowing."

_That she'll grow to be, so beautifully_

_Just like her mother, that's carrying_

Searching through the bag, she handed her friend the cell phone she retrieved earlier. In the time it took Peyton to reply to the text she'd received from Jake, and take a deep breath, Haley was on the phone crying and begging her husband to get to the hospital. She tried not to listen while she argued over the phone not understanding why he couldn't just break the rules, but didn't prevail. Peyton had been watching the monitor next to her bed, and once she saw her heart rate increasing, she took the phone from Haley and ended the call immediately after telling him they'd call back once she was calm.

"Haley, you need to calm down. All this stress is not helping your baby"

She nodded her head and sat there quietly for a few minutes.

Peyton brought over a cup of the ice chips the nurse had left, and chose her next words carefully.

"You want to talk about it? What did he say?"

"Well for starters, they're like six miles off base, and they're just getting to the rest point, so... so he can't come. He's pissed off that he can't be here, and he's demanding to talk to the doctor and for them to keep trying the meds to stop the contractions. He's so freaked out Peyton, and he doesn't get it. I really need to talk to him again. He's so scared."

The fresh batch of tears escaped her eyes and she leaned her head back silently praying for her baby girl to stay put. Going to sit next to her on the bed, Peyton began to rub her back soothingly. She knew that it had to be hard for her and that she hated what this was doing to Nathan who could do absolutely nothing for his family.

Before Peyton knew what was happening, Haley sat up and wiped her face clean with the sheet that was covering her. "Where's Jay?" she needed to see her son.

"He's out in the waiting room with Jake, I wasn't sure what was going on, and didn't want him to hear anything that might scare him"

"Thanks Peyton, but can you bring him in. He must be so scared; he had been completely out when I woke him up"

When she left out the room, Haley composed herself as much as she could, not wanting to scare her son with her mixed emotions about everything. _Poor thing!_ He had to be shaken up by this sudden turn of events. Here it was nearing four in the morning and he was stuck in a stinky hospital, knowing the last time he'd seen his mother, she was crying and shaking like a mental case. _Talk about a rough night_. Just seconds later, Peyton walked in holding onto Jay's hand while he was hiding behind her leg.

"Hey baby, why are you hiding from mommy?"

Helping Haley out, Peyton lifted Jay onto the bed next to her, and stood back to give them a moment.

He wasn't really sure what was wrong with his mommy, but he had a feeling. "Are you sick because I was sleeping in your big bed?" he said with wide scared eyes. He thought maybe _he_ had hurt his mother.

"No baby, come here" she said beckoning him closer and up on her lap. "You did not make mommy sick. I love you so much Bubbies." She thought of the nickname she used and smiled a bittersweet smile. That's what she and Nathan had taken to calling him before they knew they were having a boy. It was a name that was rarely used, but it held so much meaning to the two parents and their little one. "And yes, mommy's a little sick, but I'm okay"

"Then why are we here at your work where sick people go?" He looked up at her with eyes that matched his fathers' and she melted.

"Well if I tell you why, you can't tell anyone okay?" she said whispering.

"You mean like a secret" he said yawning; he was still very tired.

"Yep, just like a secret" she combed her fingers through his hair, really wanting to put him to sleep before he had to leave again. "Sissy is about to come soon. That's why I was a little scared, she tricked me and wants to come now instead of later. But that means you get to be a big brother really soon" she could tell that he was a bit far from sleep, and decided to just put him in better moods and redirect his attention.

He was happy to hear about being a big brother, but then sat up and stared at his mommy and looked around the room for a minute. "But what about daddy, won't he be sad cause he's at work?"

"Yea sweetie, but mommy called him and as soon as he can get off work, he's coming home to see us. So don't worry baby, don't worry at all"

She pulled him closer and hugged him tightly while holding her tears in.

_Oh Capri, she's beauty_

_Baby inside, she's loving_

She wished with everything in her that Nathan could be there, but he would miss the birth of his daughter and she had to live with that. As their hug continued, they glanced over at the door when it opened and Jake walked in and over to the two.

"Hales, Peyton filled me in, and if things go well and you delivery.. normally, we can get the camcorder from the house and set it up to film the birth if you want."

Not being able to speak for fear of crying again, she simply nodded her head and sent a grateful smile their way.

"I'll go back and get the camera, Jay you wanna ride with me?" Jake knew he wouldn't be able to stay with Haley anyway, and wanted to help out as much as he could. He also knew that if he tried to take him home to stay, he would refuse and cry for his mother the entire time "We can get some of your toys, some snacks and come right back"

Even seeing his mother nodding to him, the young boy was still skeptical and looked from his mother to his uncle a few times. "You promise we can come back to see mommy?"

Haley gently placed two fingers under Jay's chin and brought his blue eyes to look into her brown ones. "Jay, _I_ promise you'll come straight back."

_Oh Capri, she's beauty_

_There is an angel growing peacefully_

She leaned forward until their noses were barely touching and very softly rubbed them together. "I love you baby, and I _promise_ everything's gonna be okay" Kissing his forehead softly and giving him a pat on the bottom, she watched as Jake lifted him off the bed and carried him out of the room.

Haley turned on her side away from where Peyton was sitting and soothingly rubbed her stomach. "Everything's gonna be okay, everything's gonna be okay." She whispered repeatedly out loud.

Although she was talking to her daughter, Haley knew deep down that she was also trying to comfort herself with those same words.

_For once _she wasn't sure if the promises she made to herself and her children would come true.

_Oh Capri, sweet baby_

* * *

**Okay, so don't kill me for leaving it there. I know it's short, but it had to be done! Sorry, and don't hate me... review and I'll try to have the next one up pretty soon. Thanks, hope you enjoyed. Song: Capri by Colbie Callait**

**Jen**


	16. Chapter 14 Have a Little Faith In Me

**Chapter 14:**

**I believe this is a chapter we've all been waiting patiently for. I hope that you really enjoy this and will leave feedback.**

**- Jen**

* * *

**Isn't she Lovely- Stevie Wonder**

"Mommy, where is she? Can we see her yet?" asked the impatient four year old.

"Be careful of mommy's tummy. Remember that's where the baby came out and it's still a little sore." Wincing as she sat up further in the bed, Haley bit down on her lip letting the pain of that small movement die down before releasing the breath she was holding. "Peyt, can you take him"

Peyton went to her side and grabbed Jay, hoisting him on her hip before smiling at Haley. "You know you did really good Hales, She's so beautiful" Peyton said taking a seat across from her in one of the chairs. Her patience was just a low as her nephews.

"Well I don't feel like I did all that great. All I really did was lay there and let a bunch of doctors cut me open. But here we are nearly two days later, and I have no clue what my baby even looks like." She felt the tears welling up in her eyes once again feeling like a complete failure. "I just really need to see my baby girl"

Haley had been very scared and upset about her husband not being there when their daughter was born, but when she went to place her hand on her stomach and realized the obvious difference in size, she became hysterical before the nurses and Peyton.

* * *

_After being taken to the operating room as a precaution, her doctor proceeded to try and turn her baby out of the breech position. All the mothers that posted on different message boards and websites were right when they described the pain and discomfort the turning brought. _

_Dr. Green had only been applying the pressure to Haley's stomach for just over three minutes when beeping noises were heard from top left of Haley's bed, and the babys' low heart rate of 110 dropped drastically to 90. Haley was quick to look at the monitor, but before she could get any words out to her doctor, her eyes rolled into the back of her head and everything went black._

_She apparently had woken up a few times disoriented and in much discomfort from the tube that was finally removed from her throat as well as other effects from the anesthesia. Her doctor tried to explain to her what was going on, and after ignoring her and demanding Peyton to tell her what the hell is going on and where is my baby, Haley learned of what happened._

_During the turning, the placenta separated from the uterine wall causing her to have an emergency cesarean._

_Peyton witnessed the small naked baby being pushed in the small incubator and taken to the NICU. She'd told Haley everything she could about her nameless day and a half old baby daughter. She had weighed in at 4 lbs 11oz. and 18 inches long. Tiny didn't describe how small she was._

* * *

The occupants of the room looked to the door as Haleys' doctor walked into the room. She took a few minutes to check Haley's vitals over and tend to her incision before taking a seat and answering questions.

"So how is she? This is my line of work, so I'd like it straight forward." She didn't want anyone _bullshitting_her about her daughters health. If she had to, she'd run test herself and get her own answers.

"Well" she began, "as you know your daughter is considered a moderately preterm baby. She will still need to spend a week or so in the NICU, but I expect her to catch up in no time and have no long term effects of prematurity." Glancing down at the infants chart, she continued. "She is small, but we will take this one step at a time. You're aware of her weight, just under five pounds which is very decent. The great news is that her lungs are developed exceptionally well for her age, and she's not having trouble breathing, so that milestone will not be in play on releasing her from the hospital. Did you plan on nursing her?"

"Yes, at least for the first few months" She glanced over at Jake who was now holding her son while Peyton was scribbling on a notebook pad.

"Okay, great. We will have a lactation specialist come in to get you started on pumping. What we've given her so far is TPN, which is Total Parenteral Nutrition. It's an IV fluid that will provide her with total nutrition including her sugars, electrolytes, vitamins, proteins, and fats as well. She will continue the TPN while you're nursing her until her feedings increase."

"How is she being fed?"

"We have an Umbilical Catheter attached so that we're able to easily deliver the fluids and also if we need to draw blood for any reason it's painless and keeps her from being stuck by needles."

"She has to get a shot mommy?" Jay knew they were talking about his baby sister, but the only thing that he understood was the word _needle_ and he didn't like that his sister had to get a shot.

"No baby, she won't have to get any shots, they're gonna take real good care of her." Haley tried to reassure herself more with her statement than Jay.

Dr. Greene went through the milestones that Baby Scott would have to overcome before going home and although Haley was well aware of them, her mind was foggy and she was glad for the refresher. Her temperature was being regulated in the incubator so that was something she'd have to do on her home before being released as well as her feeding schedule.

"Will someone be in to change my dressing from the C-section?"

"Yes, before the Lactation Specialist comes in to help with your nursing, Jessica will be back in to change your dressing first"

"So once she begins nursing, she's through with that milestone?" Peyton asked. She had to be sure that she had all the details correct for when she told Nathan about their new baby. He wouldn't be happy that she had to stay in the hospital for weeks, and would instantly demand answers.

"In a sense"

Seeing her confused looked, she attempted to simplify it, "well let's say that on her first few feedings, she takes to nursing well, but the following feeding, she denies it and won't take it. We want to make sure she's used to it, so as long as she's consistent with her feedings, she's free to go home. We also monitor what we call "ad lib" feeding where the baby will guide themselves on a feeding schedule. They will wake when they're hungry, and take as much milk as she wishes. That's a reason she will stay on the TPN, being premature, she's not strong enough to take all of their nutrition from the bottle or breast because they tire easily. And remember that's just one step. But I assure you, she will be just fine. By the looks of her, I'll give her a week or so here before she's ready to go home. With her weight picking up some towards the end of Haley's pregnancy, things were able to move along faster and just with her lungs being so great… you've definitely got a fighter on your hands."

"Thank you so much" she sent her a grateful smile, and she exited the room.

Peyton stared at Haley for a few minutes seeing not only the sadness in her eyes, but anger there as well. She knew what was going on in her friends' mind and although Haley loved the team of doctors and nurses she worked with at the hospital, she couldn't help but feel betrayed by them. Being on the other side of the chart made things so much harder and she wished rules would've been broken for her to see her daughter although she knew it was too dangerous for them both.

"Hales.." Peyton started.

"Don't Peyton, just don't."

"I was just going to say that Luke, Brooke and Deb are driving down this afternoon. Dan is keeping Drew and they'll be down tomorrow"

"Awesome," she cheered flatly "now they can go up and see my daughter before me just like you huh?" she smiled staring directly into her friends eyes. It only took Haley a few seconds to see the tears coat the blondes' eyes before she looked away and focused on her son.

"Hey buddy, come give me a big kiss okay" Jake stood up, and hearing her voice start to crack, and brought Jay closer to his mother. "I want you to go home with Uncle Jake, and Aunt Peyton. They're gonna get you some lunch, anything you want, and I'm gonna stay here and get better okay. Aunt Brooke, Uncle Lucas, and Grandma will be here later so I want you to lay down some before they get here. You need your rest okay" She smiled once their kiss was over and Jake started to carry him out of the room.

Peyton glanced back at Haley before exiting the room, leaving Haley to completely break down. She didn't even get the chance to tell her the good news she had.

* * *

Brooke, Lucas and Deb stepped off the elevator and started passing through the waiting area when Peyton noticed them and called them over.

Brooke was the first to reach the slim blonde and engulfed her in a hug. "It's so good to see you, and thank God you were there when it happened. You saved both their lives." Pulling away she noticed the tears streaming down Peyton's face.

"She's in her room right now, but just really upset obviously. She was able to pump some milk for her but they wanted to wait until later tonight to take her to see her. She was so out of it the first few times she woke up and her blood pressure hadn't gone down, so they're just being cautious. And I know it's not personal and it's just everything that's going on, but she's so upset with me right now and she thinks I left with Jake and Jason."

She had hugged Lucas and Deb before she continued. "Just don't let her know I stayed, I know she'll come around."

"How's the baby" Lucas spoke up.

"She's doing very well, umm the doctor says she has to overcome just two of the normal milestones, maintaining her body temperature, and being able to feed on a schedule. Just go see her, I'm sure she'd love to see some familiar faces. She doesn't want anyone seeing the baby before her and Nathan can of course, but either way visiting hours for the NICU are over unless you're a grandparent or parent."

"You know we're praying for her right Haley? The both of you are gonna be outta here in no time. She's surpassed what they expected and according what I know it's as if she's completely full term and just on the small side. I just know it buddy. Now promise me you're gonna listen to your doctors and relax as much as you can, no being super Haley right now, just be a mom that needs to rest."

She leaned her head against Lucas' shoulder and nodded once while he hugged her softly. Her visitors had arrived to her room just over an hour ago, and it was nearing time for them to go. She loved seeing Brooke and Deb, and their reassurance of keeping Jay busy and stocking up on more necessities for the nursery was comforting but seeing Lucas made things better almost immediately.

Since she'd first been introduced to him after only a few months of dating Nathan, those matching blue eyes warmed her heart and she felt an instant connection.

* * *

_Boom. Boom. Boom._

_Yanking his front door open, Lucas was greeted with a hysterical Haley pushing into his apartment._

"_You knew about it didn't you? How could you Luke? He can try to protect me as much as he thinks but we promised Luke that when it comes to Nathan being shipped off we had each other's backs! I don't lie to you, and you don't lie to me about anything!"_

"_Haley, I swear to you I didn't know at first. He sent me a text yesterday night saying he was being moved into the field to work on some trucks that were having break issues or something and that he should be texting me later that day. I stayed up all damn night waiting for his text and got nothing."_

"_Then why haven't I heard from you Lucas? Why didn't you tell me"_

"_Because by the time I could call you it was all over the news and you weren't answering your cell. I knew you'd be over here so I waited. I'm just as scared as you are Haley! That's my brother!"_

_Haley looked up from where her face was buried in her hands and took in her future brother in laws's appearance. His red-teary eyes, and stressed out body language made her feel all kinda of guilt. "You're right, I'm so sorry Luke, I just….I can't even… an IED? I can't even fathom some bomb just explo.." choking on a sob, Haley allowed Lucas to pull her into a warm hug while she cried. _

"_It's you Luke. You're the one I need to help Haley through everything whenever I'm gone. Forget everyone else she loves, I need you there with her. It's the only way I'll know she's safe and taken care of" Lucas recalled the words his younger brother said to him every time he was sent away. This was his promise to his brother._

"_He's gonna be fine Haley, he's gonna be fine"_

* * *

Haley looked up when a knock was heard at her door. She knew that visiting hours were over, and was shocked to see that Peyton somehow managed to get into her Mother/Baby Unit room.

"I ummm, I asked your supervisor if she could make an exception and let me back for some time. I'm sure I'm the last person you'd want to see Haley, and I'm so sorry about everything that happened."

"No, Peyton it wasn't you.." she started but was interrupted.

"Hales, I never wanted to take away the moment of you and Nate seeing your daughter first… I just.. when they gave you the anesthesia right before you were out of it, your doctor told me you just kept whispering _don't let her be alone, don't let her be alone_ and I knew I had to go with her. You were in great hands and I just couldn't let her be around a bunch of doctors and not have someone there that loves her so much and was routing for her. I wish it was you that was able to be with her, but I couldn't leave her alone up there"

"Peyton, thank you. I was being stupid and just angry at myself before more than anything, but I'm so glad she had you there. I didn't want her to be alone either and I remember thinking that I should have told you to stay with her if anything happened to me. So thank you so much, and I'm so sorry." She opened her arms and allowed the soft embrace her friend gave her.

"Well Jay's great, he's staying with Brooke and Luke. They took him out to dinner and them to a movie, so he's having a ball. Deb's at the house just setting up the bassinette she brought down, and she's washing all baby's clothes and will bring a bag of her things up for her. Everything will be ready for when she comes home. So how long did you get to spend up there?" It had been about four hours since she'd last seen Haley and knew they must have taken her to see the baby by now. Her friend would be going crazy if not.

"Actually, I haven't been up there, I…" she stopped and they both turned at the soft knock on the door.

_Isn't she lovely,_

_Isn't she wonderful._

_Isn't she precious,_

_Less than one minute old_

She saw her doctor walk, rear first into the room, and look over her shoulder before smiling at her patient. "As promised, here's your baby girl." She backed further into the room pulling the small bassinette in with her, and moving it to the foot of Haley's bed. Haley's eyes filled with tears as she sat up more and reached for the sanitizer that sat at her bedside.

"I'm gonna get out of here Hales, i'll.."

"No! I want you here. Meet her with me" she smiled towards Peyton and sat patiently as her doctor handed over the baby.

Haley was in extreme awe of the baby that was cradled in her arms. Leaning down she inhaled her sweet baby scent and kissed her tiny face. She was so much smaller than Jay was and Haley couldn't believe she was actually holding her. "Can I take her hat off" When the older woman told her it would be okay for a few minutes, she eased the hat off her head.

_I never thought, through love we'd be_

_Making one as lovely as she_

_But isn't she lovely, made from love  
_

Peyton smiled when the small cap was taken off the baby to reveal her jet black, downy soft locks. She had so much hair already, and it was all from her daddy; thick and pin straight. Moving the blanket down from her chin and un-swaddling her a little, she continued to inspect her.

She couldn't stop noticing all the little things about her baby girl. She was a perfect mix of both her parents as far as Haley could tell. It was clear to see that she had her momma's full lips, as well as the small dimple that was softly set in her right cheek. It wasn't deep, but so soft that even the movement of her mouth would bring the lonesome dimple out. She knew that her beauty would send her husband to an early grave once the boys started to notice their little girl.

_I never thought, through love we'd be_

_Making one as lovely as she_

_But isn't she lovely, made from love_

It had been about ten minutes when Haley looked up at Peytons' wide eyes, and started to wrap her back into a swaddle. "Here Peyton, why don't you get some snuggles in with your God Daughter" she said softly to the blonde.

"God Daughter? Really? What about Brooke and, and Tonya? We don't even live that close Hales." She was honored but had to be sure because she couldn't have this taken away from her.

"This is something Nathan and I actually talked about and we both agree. We want you and Jake to be her God parents. No amount of distance will change the way you guys will pray for her and love her, and Brooke already has Jay, and lives like a half a minute from us. But she will always have something special with you Peyton. Say yes?"

For fear of crying out loud, Peyton simply nodded her head before accepting the small bundle in her arms and laying a kiss on her hat covered head. "God Hales, I have no idea how you're letting me hold her right now, I could never let her go." she laughed out a sob, and continued to let out shaky words. "I love her so much I can't even explain it… I can't wait to be a mom Hales. Me and Jake started trying since he's been back, but nothing yet. We're not discouraged or anything, just impatient, but God I want this so bad Haley."

_Isn't she pretty,_

_Truly the angels' best_

_Boy, I'm so happy,_

_We have been heaven blessed_

After just a couple of minutes her doctor walked back into the room with her chart in her hand. "Now I can give you about another half hour to be here. We have her body temp regulated in the NICU, but Haley how about we do some Kangaroo Care for the next hour and then I'll bring her back to the NICU for the night."

Nodding her head, Haley watched as she took her daughter from Peyton and stripped her free of the blanket, and laid the diaper and hat clad baby against Haley's naked chest.

"God this is the best feeling ever" Haley looked up when Peyton got her phone and started taking a few pictures to send to Nathan. "Your daddy is going to be just so in love with you baby girl"

_I can't believe what God has done  
through us he's given life to one  
_

Haley looked down reading the text she received from her husband and smiled after kissing her daughters head and rubbing her hand gently over her soft naked skin.

"Your daddy loves you _Madeline Jaymes Scott_"

_But isn't she lovely made from love_

* * *

It had been two weeks total that Madeline Jaymes slept in the NICU of San Antonio Medical Center, and three days total for her mother. Four days after she was born, two days after her first attempt, is when the baby first took to nursing from her momma. Haley had been very disappointed in herself when the baby had no idea what to do with the nipple that was close to her mouth. It had been very awkward with the nurse having her pull the baby closer and trying to _put_ her nipple in the baby's mouth. Needless to say, it didn't work at all, and throughout that day and the first two feedings the next morning, Madeline continued to be fed via her umbilical catheter.

Haley was a trooper through the entire ordeal and every time her daughter needed to be fed, Haley was prepared to give it another go. After her failed attempts, Haley kindly asked the nurse to leave her alone with Madeline while she tried feeding her. The nurse refused at first saying that she wanted to make sure Haley wouldn't get frustrated or hurt because the baby would feel that and set them back more, but Haley insisted that afternoon on doing it alone.

That's when her precious baby girl latched on; when it was just her and her mommy. She loved nursing her baby, and since that feeding, Madeline naturally took to breastfeeding altogether. Before Haley was released, she had Peyton bring her breast pump to the hospital, and pumped as much milk as she could for when Madeline would still be there. She had gained a few ounces, but she agreed with her doctor on keeping her until she was over 5 lbs.

It had also been a struggle to get the stubborn baby to drink from a bottle. But once again, Haley had been persisted, and just a few hours before she was discharged, Haley had gotten her drinking out of the Dr. Browns bottle.

Every morning Peyton was there to help Haley around the house, and drove her to the hospital for the day. The incision from her C-Section had her in pain eighty percent of the day, but before she'd be dropped off at the hospital, she'd take the medicine she'd been prescribed with her breakfast. Her supervisor, at first against it, caved and finally gave her something that she could take and as long as she pumped enough beforehand to cover two feedings, her baby girl would not suffer any effects of the medication.

She'd check herself into the NICU as early as eight-fifteen in the morning, and most days would not leave until check out time for parents at six-thirty. Her favorite part of the day, besides cuddling Madeline, was the constant flow of sent and received text messages, videos and phone calls from her husband. In the short two week span Haley had sent over eighty pictures and thirteen videos via text and actually had to increase their data plan on their phone service.

The constant hours spent talking with Nathan about every little thing their daughter did constantly had the nurses in the NICU admiring the strong couple. Haley had a few of her co-workers looking in on her, but also was able to meet a few nurses that recently started at the hospital. Nathan was already in love with his baby girl and would spend a couple of minutes each day on speaker phone just talking to her.

No matter how happy she was for her little girl to come home, Haley paced the small room clearly upset. They were taking so long to get Madeline checked out, but the real reason for her foul mood was that she hadn't been able to get in touch with Nathan all day. Not only was their daughter able to finally come home, but it was January 19th, his birthday and he was nowhere to be found.

Two weeks passed and this week, really the third week since her husband surprised the small family on Christmas Eve, was the weekend he would be able to come home and visit. Haley did everything in her power to make sure their baby girl was ready to come home by the time that Nathan would be there. She refused to let him meet their daughter in the NICU, and wanted his homecoming to be perfect. He'd already missed the first two weeks of her life and they were both saddened by that time they'd never get back.

* * *

Haley sighed in relief when the nurse came in carrying her screaming baby. She knew it was time for her to eat, but instead of taking the bottle from the nurse, Haley asked to be alone while she nursed her. She pulled out her phone to try her husband once more, and when she got no answer she texted Jake who was in the waiting room to tell him she'd be a minute.

Once she was done nursing on each side, Haley burped, and then proceeded to change the baby's clothes. She grabbed the small diaper bag and pulled out the long sleeve green one piece that had light pink and cream dots on it. She didn't want to crowd her in pink and decided that the outfit had enough pink in it for her. After dressing her, she dressed her in the warm one piece coat and draped the blanket over her. After signing her out, she walked out to find Jake waiting right outside for her patiently. Strapping her car seat into its' base, she bucked herself up and sat next to her for the car ride home.

On the way home, Jake drove carefully, making sure he didn't disturb the sleeping baby. Peyton was at home cooking dinner and watching Jay until they got there. He was very impatient, having only been able to see his baby sister two times.

Haley sat in the back thinking about all the things she had to do when she got home before the next feeding. She knew that there were plenty of diapers in her bags and she had to still unpack everything that had been at the hospital like diapers, wipes, and bottles. They had used up all the milk she'd left at the hospital, and she had to wash out the last few bottles and actually wasn't positive if she had any clean ones for the next feeding.

She wasn't sure if she wanted to set up the bassinette in her room, but with recovering from her C-section, it was still hard to get around everywhere. She should have been pretty healed from the cesarean, but after straining herself to much, she had to get a few more stitches inserted. The medicine she'd been taking was working its magic but she knew it would wear off soon, and wanted to wean herself off of it.

When they pulled in her garage, Haley took a deep breath and calmed herself down. This was a happy moment, and she just wanted to enjoy it, and not stress over other things. Besides, she had help there, and knew that Brooke and Lucas would be fighting to come over later. Haley unsnapped the baby from the green and gray car seat and carried her in while Jake brought in the empty car seat and the diaper bag.

"Mommy!" Jay screeched out as soon as the front door opened. He ran over to his mommy and clutched onto her leg

"Hey baby, you miss your sister?" she said rubbing his cheeks affectionately.

"Yes, you and Sissy, mommy"

"You wanna come help me put her in her room. She needs to take a nap"

He shook his head and ran back over to where he was eating ice cream at the table, and all Haley could do was laugh.

Waving at Peyton, Haley made her way down the hall to the nursery, already removing the blanket from the baby's face.

Pushing the door open, she froze at the site of her husband bent over closing the diaper genie, and stacking diapers in the top drawer.

"Hi Hales" he said standing up and grinning at her.

"You asshole. You were here the whole time?" she cried out, already feeling the tears on her face.

"Of course I was Haley. I couldn't not be here"

Haley walked over beside him and laid the infant down on the changing table. She unzipped the coat and grabbed a blanket from the diaper bag to hand to her husband.

Nathan and Haley both took sanitation around their babies seriously. They made sure that anyone who held them when they were young had been sanitized and had a fresh, clean blanket covering them. He draped the blanket across his chest and felt the small weight in his hands when his wife handed over their daughter. He watched her squirm around and get comfortable and then leaned down and inhaled her perfect scent before placing a kiss on her forehead. He moved back and leaned down to where his wife was and placed a gentle kiss on her lips.

_When the road gets dark  
and you can no longer see  
Let my love throw a spark  
Have a little faith in me_

"I can't believe you're here baby" Haley said against his lips.

"How could I miss something as perfect as this? I'm so sorry I wasn't here before"

"Hey," she said pulling back and running her thumb over his lips "you're here now, that's all that matters"

"She's so beautiful" he kissed her thumb when it went across his lips, then turned his attention back to his daughter.

Brining the small infant to shoulder, he turned his head, kissing her tiny face repeatedly while rubbing her back. "You're so beautiful Maddie-Bear, yea you are. Daddy's here now and he's been waiting a long time for his perfect angel to get here. I'm so sorry I wasn't here before." He turned to Haley with tears in his eyes, knowing how raw the pain of him not being there still was. Those two weeks were filled with precious moments he would never get back.

Haley moved closer to Nathan and laid her head against his free shoulder, giving his neck a quick kiss before squeezing him to her body. "I know baby, me too" She knew she couldn't focus on that right now, and guided him over to the rocking chair. He settled down in the chair as Haley went to the bottom of the crib and put in the cd she'd brought in earlier that day. When she walked back over to the rocking chair, Nathan eased Maddie back into the crook of his arm before pulling her down to sit in his lap. He brought one hand up to her face and fully kissed her lips. They continued kissing until the music began to softly play and Nathan smiled against her lips.

"Woman, you're gonna brain wash our baby" he said pushing her hair behind her ear.

"Well I've already brainwashed you and Jay, why not Maddie too?" she asked softly.

He leaned forward and gently sucked on her bottom lip, pulling it open and asking for her permission to enter. Opening her mouth she lured his tongue in as his hands moved further down her neck. Before he could go any further, Haley pulled away seeing the desire in his eyes. Moving off his lap, she removed the small cap from the baby's head and grinned when her husband finally saw the wild feather-like hair sticking up. He touched the soft long hairs before laughing at how her feather like locks refused to lay flat. Gently, Haley took her from his arms and laid the baby in between the two cushions that cocooned her small body allowing her sleeping position to be undisturbed.

They both kissed the baby's head and grabbed the monitor before leaving the room.

When they entered the master bedroom, Nathan watched Haley set up the baby monitor on their night stand as he closed the door softly. Walking over to where she was, he sat back on the bed, and pulled Haley on his lap straddling him. She was very grateful for the mild pain reliever they'd given her and when she felt the small stab of pain, she wondered when the serious pain would kick in. Leaning her forehead against his, she blinked back the tears that began to settle at the corners of her eyes. Wrapping his arms around her, he allowed her to fall into his body; her tears now drenching him as her face hid in the crook of his neck.

_And when the tears you cry  
are all you can believe  
Just give these loving arms a try baby and  
Have a little faith, faith in me  
_

She wanted to be held by her husband and just let out all the emotion she had been feeling. Sadness of him not being there, their daughters' low weight, leaving her at the hospital for days; everything. She felt like a basket case, and just needed the comforting arms of her husband there. Feeling his strong arms loosen their grip, Haley moved back to look him in the eyes, and sent him a small smile. _Her daughter had those eyes now_.

_Have a little faith in me  
Have a little faith in me, oh and  
Have a little faith in me  
Have a little faith, faith in me  
_

Leaning forward, Haley softly kissed Nathan's top lip, then proceeded to make a trail down, kissing his bottom lip, then his chin. She continued down to his neck, where she sucked hungrily on the skin before nipping at it with her teeth. _Damn her husband tasted good._

Feeling his body temperature skyrocket, Nathan held her waist close to him, and turned them over now towering over her. Making sure that he didn't put his weight on her, he captured her lips in long hungry kisses, desperately wishing he could take her right there. He could never get enough of her kisses and always had to have more. No matter what anyone said, nothing could measure up to the feeling he got whenever he kissed his wife; her taste was intoxicating.

After he completed the attack on her lips, he moved down to her neck and repeated the same attention she had given him, only he was gentle. He had to pace himself due to her post-pregnant body knowing how he could be. It was easy for him to get caught up and out of control once he'd catch her scent. Leaning down, he softly kissed the top of her shirt that covered each of her breasts. He remembered when Jay was born and how gentle he had to be when he showed the fuller mounds attention; they had been so sore throughout the first few weeks.

After going for her lips for the last time, he tenderly kissed her forehead and made his rounds to her eye lids, nose and finally her chin. Looking up into her eyes, he saw the once trapped tears, making their way down her face.

"I love you so much Haley. You have no idea how you make me feel" he had to let her know it would always be this way according to him.

"The feeling's mutual" she whispered staring up from beneath him.

"Why do you love me so much" he asked her with wonder in his eyes. He knew why he loved her, but it was unreal for someone as perfect as her to love him. He felt so blessed and honored.

"I don't even think they have words to explain why I love you. Why do you love me?"

"That's easy, you're Haley. You're my Haley, and I love everything about you"

"Yea, like what?"

_When your secret heart  
Cannot speak so easily  
Come here baby, from a whisper start  
To have a little faith in me_

"I love your heart. You've put up a lot with me, and you've never given up on me. I love you because you gave me two beautiful children, and you take such good care of them. I love that no matter what you never lose your faith in God, or even in me for that matter. I love that you sing This Years Love to our kids and even me, and you're so loyal to our relationship and to your friends. You never turn your back on people, even when they deserve it. I even love your snoring, and how you have never sneezed only one time. Haha, Haley I love everything about you, I even love how our children mostly take after me"

Haley pulled his face directly down to hers and kissed his lips lovingly. Just seconds after leaning back up, Nathan bent down and kissed the corners of her eyes, ceasing the flow of tears spilling out.

_And when your back's against the wall  
Just turn around and you, you will see  
I will catch your, I will catch your fall just  
Have a little faith, faith in me  
_

"... I hope you guys are hungry" Peyton said pushing the door open and walking into the room. Stopping mid-step, she let her mouth drop open at the sight of the couple on the bed. Nathan was still hovered over Haley while her hands rested against his cheeks.

"Sorry guys" she said blushing, "dinner's ready" she started to talk out the room, then came back with a fresh thought. "On the other hand, I really hope that you two aren't about to ... you know, because a women should not have any sexual intercourse until at least six weeks after her baby is born, and besides, that's just gross it's only been two weeks Nathan"

"Thank you Peyton" Nathan said crinkling his forehead.

"Well when you're done, come out and eat. And also, Brooke called, said she'd give you guys the day, but come tomorrow you can't keep here away any longer."

When she left the room, Nathan dropped his head down in the crook of Haley's neck and sighed.

"Is that what my lil man's been dealing with since I've been gone?" he said jokingly.

"Yea, we should go eat with him, he really misses his daddy a lot" she kind of felt bad that they hadn't spent any time with Jay, although she had no idea how long her husband had been home. Maybe they had some bonding time earlier?

"I know, it's just... I had to be with you for a while"

"I'm glad you did, I needed that just as much as you did"

_Have a little faith in me  
Have a little faith in me  
Have a little faith in me  
Have a little faith, faith in me_

He lifted himself up off the bed, and pulled her up next into a warm comforting embrace. He put his arm around her shoulder, and she brought her hand up to link them together. Turning around Nathan grabbed the baby monitor, and they made their way into the dining room after peeking in on Madeline.

Never unlinking their hands, Nathan sat down and pulled Haley in the chair next to his. Jay came out of his bathroom and made a dash as soon as he spotted his parents. Using the table, he climbed onto his mother's lap and snuggled up to her.

_I've been loving you for such a long, long time  
Expecting nothing in return  
Just for you to have a little faith in me  
You see time, time is our friend  
Cos for us there is no end  
All you gotta do is have a little faith in me_

While she was constantly at the hospital with Madeline all week, he'd be with either Luke and Brooke or Jake and Peyton. Needless to say, he really missed his mommy.

They sat down and ate, Nathan forcing Haley bites of food after claiming she wasn't hungry. Peyton and Jake had both laughed at them, and then went out to give the family some privacy.

"I have to talk to you later on tonight" he said into her ear while they sat on the couch after dinner; Jay now curled up on his father's chest.

"You get to stay the weekend right?" they hadn't talked about him leaving yet, and she was shocked.

"Well somebody's gotta be up to feed Madeline all through the night" he said smirking at her.

"When do you have to leave?" she asked sleepily.

"We'll talk about that later. I should put him down for a nap" he was actually shocked. His son wasn't one to take a nap during the day unless he was really tired out.

"Yea, his sleep's been a little off since being moved around like a nomad with everyone's schedules and me at the hospital all the time."

"How are you dealing with everything? Are you okay?"

"I'm actually good, no I'm great now that you're here, and having Jake and Peyton here helps a ton and with Brooke and Luke being back in town. I mean, it still hurts that you're gone, but it has gotten a lot easier with their support"

"Good, I never wanted to have to leave you guys, and I can't wait until it's all over with"

_I will hold you up, I will hold you up and  
Your love gives me strength enough to  
Have a little faith in me  
Oh faith, darlin'_

"I know... the only thing that scares me is that you'll get sent off somewhere, and either get really hurt or even worse; you'll never come back to me... back to us"

"Yea...that's mine too."

He could only kiss her forehead when he heard her sniffles.

"I love you Haley James Scott. I'm gonna love you always and forever" he whispered against her ear._  
_

They both had the same fear.

Their children growing up without a father.

Losing the love of their life.

He laid down beside his wife that night for bed, and pulled her sleeping form closer to his, the small bassinette next to his side of the bed. "It'll all work out Haley, you just gotta have faith" he whispered.

_Have a little faith in me_

* * *

**I hope that you all forgive me for that lousy chapter.. I honestly have been ready to post for about a week but had big trouble with the scene of Nathan meeting Maddie, and I still don't like it at all.. like really am disappointed in the scene. Anywho, let me know ur thoughts. Will be updating a lot sooner **


	17. Chapter 15 Everything

**Chapter 15:**

**Hey guys! I hope that you enjoy this chapter as well. Please review. This chapter is dedicated to PellyChelly94 thanks girl for the encouragement!**

* * *

**Chapter 16: **

**Everything**

Madeline kept her parents active throughout her entire first night home. Between feedings, wet diapers, stinky diapers, and needing comfort, Haley was damn grateful that Nathan was there. Even though she recently worked with infants daily, it had been a good four years since she'd been up in the middle of the night for feedings and diapers changes.

Maddie was a pretty quiet baby, and he wondered if she'd be anything like Jason. His little boy was quiet as a baby, but once he got to his fifth month or so, he demanded attention. He was a mommy and daddy's boy depending on his mood, and Nathan blamed Haley for his mixed emotions saying he got them from her wacky family. She never argued against it; it was true. Right now they all agreed that Madeline was a baby that would keep you on your toes no matter what. She was quiet, but could demand attention and get her parents attention easily.

* * *

Haley walked into the nursery and lazily smiled at the precious scene that she saw. Her husband was swaying back and forth while their daughter was curled up against his chest. _This Years Love_ was playing as it always did, and she wasn't surprised to see that it lulled her baby to sleep. She'd lull herself to sleep with the song throughout her pregnancy and even before it. She slowly walked towards him rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"So this is the girl that stole you from me? I was wondering who all my attention went to. Is she awake?" she said placing her hand on the child's back.

"Nope, she's been out for a few minutes. I just wanted to hold her for a while." He said nearly blushing. He actually had a little girl.

"You should come back to bed and hold me; I'm kind of getting lonely.

Nodding his head, he wrapped his daughter back up tightly, and laid her in the crib; him and Haley kissing her goodnight once again. They had both agreed that she would sleep in her crib until Nathan left, that way they could have a bit of privacy and not wake the baby.

Climbing in the bed, Haley was pleased to feel herself surrounded by her husband's arms and body. Pulling her closer to him, Nathan kissed her cheek and snuggled closer to her warm body.

* * *

It was about ten in the morning when Haley decided _not_ to go back to sleep after tending to Madeline. Sniffing the air, she was surprised to smell breakfast being cooked, when she knew her husband was still in bed after being up with their daughter most of the night. Finally reaching the kitchen, she saw Brooke in her only cooking fashion; iPod on hip, earphones in, spatula in hand, and bubbly brunette dancing around.

When Haley made it over to her, she pulled one of her earphones out, and greeted her sister with an exhausted, grateful smile.

"Hey, thanks for making breakfast" she said pulling her into a hug. She felt like she hadn't seen her at all in the last week; cause she hadn't.

"No thanks necessary" she said pulling back and looking at her. "You know it's not fair how awesome you look after having a baby only two weeks ago. Are you sure you were even pregnant? I know you didn't want everyone to see her before Nate, and trust me, I completely agree with you, but he's here now, and has seen her, yet you still haven't let me even see my god-daughter"

"Don't be so dramatic Brooke, you know anytime you want to have her at three am you can." She said laughing at the usual pout that she wore. "I'll get her after I get Nathan up, but there is something I have to tell you"

She stood there biting her lip when Brooke raised a single eyebrow at her. "And what would that be"

"You're not her god-mother"

Mouth agape, eyes wide, and for once at a lost for words, Brooke didn't speak for a minute. "What?"

"Well you're Jay's godmother; you already got one of my spawns." She said trying to lighten the mood.

"Who's her god-mother?" she said slitting her eyes towards her best friend.

"Well Nathan and I had already talked about it, and after asking her, she said yes" after receiving another quirking eyebrow, she continued. "I want Peyton to be her god-mom"

"Fine" she said absently "I got Jay anyway" she raised her chin confidence.

"Whatever, you're still gonna love her just as much, seriously Brooke, just wait till you see her"

"Well then go get her" she said impatiently.

"I just got her back down, just wait until I wake Nathan first. Besides, I saw her sign in sheet, you were at the hospital this week visiting her" she said smirking. She knew she couldn't withhold her daughter from Brooke, and purposely put her on the allowed visitors list. When she went to the hospital, she wasn't surprised at all to find Brooke and Lucas' signatures a few times.

"I'm not really sure what you're talking about... we umm just wanted to make sure she was alright. You know what who cares, she's my niece, and I can check on her if I want to" she said all in one breath.

"Thanks Brooke, I'm really glad you went up to visit her. She'll need her aunt Brooke around as much as possible"

She sent her a wink, and walked over to the cabinet to get a small saucer out. She took one of the warm biscuits Brooke had made, spread her husbands' favorite raspberry jelly on it, and walked back into the room. Once on the bed, she sat on her knees in front of Nathan and placed the warm food at his mouth. Feeling something on him, he moved his head away before letting it rest back at it's original spot, only to feel the tickles again.

Finally opening his eyes, he rolled his eyes at the sight of his angelic looking wife staring down at him, wide eyed and all smiles. His early riser loved playing morning games with him. After bending down to kiss his lips, she sat back and took a bite of the flaky breakfast food.

"Mmmm, bite" she said after relishing in its' goodness.

She put the biscuit to his mouth and he bit into it, then leaned up and returned her kiss.

"Yum" he said honestly referring to his wife's lips. "You shouldn't have cooked, I want to you to rest as much as possible; especially while I'm here"

"Oh, I did get rest, Brooke's in there cooking for us"

"Oh, where are Peyton and Jake?"

"At the office. They're getting started on the work in the new office and everything. And I think Jake's gonna do a bit of recording so he can spend some time at the office with Peyton. So they'll be gone some of the day from now on"

"But Brooke will be over some right? And Tonya when she can" he had to make sure someone would be there to help Haley, especially after recovering from her cesarean. He took her hand and pulled her hand down to his mouth, eating the last bite of her biscuit.

"Good" he said when she nodded her head. "I don't want you to have to do everything alone while I'm not here and mom was gonna come down for a week, but since Dad got sick, she doesn't want to chance it with Maddie."

"Speaking of you being here, when do you have to leave?"

"You're not gonna let this go are you?" he climbed out of bed, and put on his sweat pants and a tee shirt.

She sat down on the bed with her legs dangling off the side; feet barely skimming the floor. "I'm sorry, I just wanna know how long until I have to let you leave us again"

He came over to stand over her and placed both hands on her shoulders, softly messaging them. "Tomorrow night"

"Did you tell them you just had a baby, that just spent two weeks in the freaking NICU? That soon?" she moved his hands from her shoulders, and stood up only to bury her face under his chin.

"But I'll be back Friday night. Remember Hales, every weekend" he didn't want to upset her, and hoped the news would make lighten her mood back up.

Stretching her legs up until she was at eye level with him, she leaned her forehead closer to his, "well you gotta explain that to Madeline, you know how she is. She won't take no for an answer"

"I wish it were her I had to convince; Jay's not gonna like it"

"He's not" they both agreed, "come on, let's get him up, I'm starving"

"Alright, you go ahead, and I'll bring in Jay. First I gotta drain the sea monster" he said with a serious face.

"Too much Dogdeball babe" she said rolling her eyes at her husbands' new favorite movie. She moved to climb off the bed, and winced in pain.

"You okay?" he said in the doorway of the bathroom.

"Yea, just cramps. I guess the drugs they had me on had to fully wear off sooner or later."

"You want something for it?" he'd seen the incision last night, and could tell that it had to hurt.

"I'll take something once I have something on my stomach."

He went in to use the bathroom, and when he came back, he saw Haley curled up on the bed, clutching her stomach.

"What's wrong? What can I do" he went over to rub her back. He found out before, that all you can really do is ask _what_ to do.

"God it hurts Nathan. Can you get the heating pad from the closet?"

Once he retrieved it, he helped her sit up, and placed the warming pad under before standing back up.

"I'll be right back, just relax" he kissed her lips then left the room.

When he went out to the kitchen, he saw Brooke putting the food into Tupperware and loading the pans and dishes into the washer.

"Hey you" he said pulling her in a tight hug. "Thanks so much for taking care of Hales and Jay while I'm away, you and Luke. Haley isn't feeling good, the cut from her c-section is starting to hurt, so I'm just gonna bring her a small plate so she's able to take some medicine"

"Ok, you want me to wake Jay up and feed him?"

"Yea, thanks."

"Well what about Madeline? Your wife won't let me see her"

He laughed knowing that as soon as she got her hands on his daughter she would be spoiled rotten. "Haley just put her down, but if she gets fussy, you can get her."

He walked back into his room and sat on the edge of the bed next to Haley.

"Eat some of this, and then I'll get you some medicine"

Helping her sit up again, he started to hand over the plate until he saw she didn't look in the least interested, so he decided to humor her and feed her himself. She was content with just opening her mouth and chewing, and happily took the medicine once she was done.

"You rest up, I'll be back" he said smoothing her hair form her forehead.

"Where are you going" she said grabbing his hand when he began to pull away.

"Say good morning to Jay. Brooke got him up and is feeding him.

"Alright, give him a kiss for me"

Walking _back_ into the kitchen he laughed at Jay bobbing his head to the music like his aunt had been moments ago.

"Hey buddy"

He picked the small boy up and kissed his cheek. His little guy was all smiles with jelly covering his little lips. He knew he wasn't much of a breakfast person if it wasn't cereal so he knew that he wouldn't be eating much more than he already had. Looking at the small Bob the Builder plate, he saw that he'd polished his eggs off, and had eaten most of his biscuit. Taking the plate to the sink, he rinsed it off before grabbing a wipe from the counter and wiped Jay's hands and mouth before putting him down.

"Where's mommy?" his big eyes searched his fathers curiously.

Nathan had been waiting for that question, and was actually looking to distract him. As much as he loved his dad, the small child had gotten used to just his mommy for the last few months.

"She's lying down for a little while, but she did want me to give you a big kiss from her" after he kissed the small cheek, he pulled back and saw the sad look on his face.

"What's wrong Jay"

"nuffing" he said sniffing.

"No, don't lie to me. Tell me what's wrong"

"I want mommy" Nathan's heart broke at the small tears that escaped his eyes.

"Come on man, you know you don't' have to cry for that. You can see mommy anytime, so no more crying okay"

He walked back into the room and saw Haley lying in bed asleep. Nathan sat the boy down on the bed, and he just sat there. Looking up at his daddy, he gave out the puppy eyes and pouty lip.

"Just give mommy a kiss and we can wake her up in a little while. She's just tired buddy"

After giving his mommy a peck on the cheek, he was scooped up and taken into his own room.

"So", he started. Jay he was sitting up against Jay's bed, while the boy still pouted next to him. "You wanna play?"

"No"

"Yea you do, come on. I'm gonna beat you up, you better fight back"

Reaching over, he poked him in the stomach, making the boy move away. He grabbed one of the pillows off the bed, and hit him with it. After a few more times of hitting him, Jay's shell dissolved away, and he pounced on Nathan.

Nathan had missed wrestling with his son, and he knew how to bring out the feisty side of him. They rolled around on the floor wrestling with Jay making fight noises, that Nathan could only laugh at. Every time Jay would punch him, he's make a sound that resembled a bomb exploding.

They went on playing for a little more then decided to put on a new movie Jay had gotten. While Jay chose the movie, Nathan got a bag of hot cheetos and a bottle of water for them to snack on, and sat down on the floor. Deciding to get comfortable, Jay settled himself on Nathan's lap, and watched as the movie started.

* * *

Haley woke up a few hours later and went into feed Madeline. While burping her, she walked down the hall and saw her _little_ boy asleep on her _big_ boy when she passed Jay's room. After quietly closing the door, she walked down the hall into the living room and found Brooke lounging on the couch watching tv.

"Can I finally see her" Brooke asked holding her arms out already.

"Just let me nurse her on the other side and you can burp her and take her"

Other than Nathan, Brooke was the only person she felt _completely_ comfortable with nursing around. When they'd had Jay and Drew, and were still nursing, they of course shared everything and helped each other out and encouraged the other as much as possible. Needless to say, this would not be the first time that Haley nursed around her without covering up.

"So, I know that Peyton and Jake are here to help you, and we're around too, but tell me what you're thinking with Nate still not being home? Honestly Hales, this is me." she said after washing her hands and grabbing a fresh receiving blanket from the nursery.

"Well, to be honest, it really sucks, especially now with Peyton and Jake at the studio most of the day. I'm not sure how I'll be able to do it alone with taking Jay to school three days a week, nursing _and_ recovering from the c-section. I mean it wasn't until today that I really felt the brunt of the pain from it and it was nearly paralyzing. I guess I'm just feeling a little alone.. like a single parent even more now."

"Hales, you know we're here too. I'll get Jay for school on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, then we can take turns cooking dinner, and I can work from here on some days on my sketches. We can even alternate picking the boys up, so you can get out of the house sometimes. Haley, it's just like when you had Jay, you are _never_ alone because I'm always here for you"

Haley looked up from her daughter, where her eyes had been glued, and sent Brooke a teary smile. "Thank you best friend"

After a few more minutes Haley pulled her bra back up, and handed the baby to her aunt. Brooke happily started to burp the baby, while Haley fixed her shirt and stood up.

"Hey, where you off to?" She rubbed circular motions over the baby's' back excited for her to burp so she could smother her in kisses and hugs, this being her first time holding her.

"I'm gonna go try and wash up before the boys wake up. Maybe even catch up on some sleep. Let me know if you need me to take her, but you two need to do some bonding" she said winking at the brunette before handing her the burping cloth.

There were only a few people that Haley would allow full access to her newborn daughter, and Brooke was second on that list.

* * *

It was just over two hours later when Nathan started up a movie in Jay's room before walking out, and closing the door half way. Hearing a familiar noise down the hall, he walked into the bedroom he shared with his wife and saw her sitting up on their bed with her breast pump on her chest.

"Hey sleepyhead" Haley's greeting was a horse one as her husband leaned down, giving her a soft kiss.

He smiled at her before taking the bottle she was handing to him and screwing on one of the new disposable tops they'd gotten from the hospital. "So we already sent her back huh? I didn't like her that much anyway" he said referring to his daughter not being in her crib, or bassinette.

"Watch it Scott, she's kinda grown on me. Can't believe I got all of that from both sides" she looked at the bottle he held that a full five ounces of her milk.

"You smell nice" he ignored her statement and frowned at the warm bottle and the milk that was already separating inside the bottle.

"I had a bath while you and Jay were asleep you coward" she smirked at him. Her husband had a fear of breast milk, and she constantly teased him for it. Jay had been home from the hospital only three days when Nathan drank some of her milk that Lucas "poured" for him. It had been comical watching him spit the milk out and bitch about it for days.

"Okay, jokes aside, where's my baby?" he wasn't necessarily worried, but he missed his little girl already and just wanted to hold her.

"I'm gonna get a little more sleep. Maddie's in the living room with Brooke. You can tell her to go home.."

"Yea and get slapped or chewed out?"

"She's harmless when it comes to holding a newborn baby" she joked knowing how it was the complete opposite. "I'll text her tomorrow, but you can feed Mad's and spend some time with her"

Nodding his head, Nathan walked out closing the door behind him. Walking into the living room, he smiled when he saw Brooke rocking back and forth while his daughter squirmed and let out tiny cat-like cries. Before his next step, she let out a louder cry that didn't stop right away like the previous one.

His heart broke, like really broke hearing that sound. Not his baby girl, not ever.

Walking up to Brooke he ignored her and completely focused on Madeline. "No, no, no baby. Come here Maddie-Bear, daddy's right here, you're okay." He slowly scooped her from his sister in laws arms, and turned away from her once he lifted her to his chest. "You hungry baby. You need some food huh, daddy's got it. It's nasty milk that came from mommy, but at least it makes you grow up and be healthy just like your big brother." He walked back into the nursery and sat in the rocking chair, before grabbing a burping cloth and feeding her.

"You can do it Bear" he cooed encouraging her to suck at the nipple that was at her lips. "Just like mommy taught you… that a girl Bear" He smiled and kissed her face when she started eating.

He'd be lying if he didn't say it scared him a little to be holding her. His son was never this small, but as scary as it was holding her, he knew he'd protect his tiny bundle with his life and always handle her with such care. It was a few minutes later when he checked the bottle and brought her up to his chest to burp her.

"You got something in there for me Bear? You know your mom burps a lot, kind of like a guy when she has one of daddy's beers, but don't tell her I said that. She's too much of a lady to admit that.

Hearing her begin to whine a little, he pulled her back in his arms and got her started again. She'd barely eaten one ounce, but he praised her nonetheless. He was completely smitten with her.

* * *

It was Sunday afternoon and Haley was waiting for Nathan to come into the kitchen with Madeline while she filled the long green baby tub with warm water. Brooke and Lucas were coming over soon and Brooke would stay the night to help Haley out since Nathan had to return to base that night.

"So let's just make this quick, I really don't think she's gonna enjoy this Hales." Nathan stood beside her with a naked Madeline swaddled in a receiving blanket.

"Nate, she's gonna be freaked out just like Jay was. It's normal and you know it, but this is a new way I heard turns out really well. The blanket will keep her warm in the water and we can just pull out each limb to wash and then re-swaddle once we're done. It's easy babe, trust me. Can you check the water for me?"

After nodding, he stopped Haley from lowering her into the cushioned tub. "Let me do it, let me see her, you wash, I'll hold her up" He as freaking out completely. He didn't like the idea of giving her a bath this soon. Yea she was technically two and a half weeks old, but to him, she was barely a day old.

He lowered her into the water and her tiny blue eyes grew wide before she started squirming and letting out her cat cries. "No no no, Hales she's not ready, not yet" he tried to stop her from pulling one of Maddie's small arms out of the blanket.

"Nathan, it's okay for her a cry a little, I'll be fast" she couldn't lie and say she wasn't completely in love with her husband right now. His concern for their daughter was very precious but it gave her a worried glance into their future. She'd be spoiled as hell.

He lasted as long as he could, but once he noticed her volume rising, and saw her tiny face turn pink, he had enough. "Not gonna happen Hales, she hates this!" He reached for the fluffy towel that lay across his shoulder before scooping her up in his arms and wrapping her in it. "I can't do this Haley, help me get her changed okay?" he walked back to the nursery, peeking back to make sure that Haley was following him.

"We should just stick with sponge baths for a while. I don't think her body's ready for that yet Hales, I mean she's so small. It's just a bad idea." He dried off her bottom and put a fresh diaper on her before he started to dress her in a one piece sleeper dress. He looked over to Haley to find her biting her bottom lip and her arms folded across her chest.

"What?" he asked once he had her dress and re-swaddled in a fresh blanket.

"I'm in big trouble already aren't I? I mean she started whining during her very first bath and you pull her out and basically give her, her way. We gotta get you a new pair huh baby?" she smirked at him, glancing down at the front of his shorts before walking out of the room.

"Hey! I still have my balls Haley James! Hell I'll show you my balls if you want." he yelled out at her. Looking down at his now calm daughter he smiled, "Daddy won't let that mean mommy put you in that cold water anymore Bear"

After cleaning up Maddie's short-lived bath, Haley started on some homemade mashed potatoes, and checked on the roast that was nearly done cooking in the crockpot. She knew Brooke would be bringing the salad when they arrived and wanted to make sure everything else was ready.

Two knocks were heard on the front door, before Brooke, Lucas and Drew let themselves into the house and were greeted by Haley.

"Hey Hales, you look beautiful" Lucas said being the first to hug her.

"Sure I do Luke. Hey little man" She glanced down at Drew who'd taken a seat near the front door before yanking his shoes off and putting them in the small basket in the coat closet.

"Hi Naley, where's your baby? Mommy said we could see her today" He was eager to see the baby. He'd never been around a baby before.

"She's with Uncle Nathan, but they'll be out in a second. Go tell Jay you're here."

He ran back into the room and Haley and Brooke set up things for dinner. Lucas went over to the sink and started washing his hands when his wife sent him a glare.

"You're giving me that look again" he squinted.

"We already talked about this Lucas, and you promised so stop washing your stupid hands" she pouted.

"Okay" Haley looked between the two of them confused. "What's going on with you two?" she really hoped they weren't going through anything serious.

"Nothing, it's.." Brooke began before Lucas interrupted.

"Oh, my wife here is just trying to hog my niece that's all. She tried to convince me to play with Jay so that she could hold Madeline first."

Haley looked at Brooke with wide eyes and a playful, yet shocked appearance. "Brooke! You got to spend hours with her just yesterday, let Luke see her first."

They both knew she took to ignoring them and was also completely embarrassed by the situation. She really couldn't help herself. "Well if someone wasn't denying me the possibility of having my own daughter soon, I wouldn't have to be this way." The look she shot Lucas wasn't playful at all, but a serious one.

"Okay" Haley drew out "Well forget Brooke, you guys should be worried about Nathan letting you hold her."

"Oh Gosh, is he already protective of her?" Lucas laughed.

"I don't think there's a word invented for his bond with that little girl. As his wife and her mother I'm completely in love with watching them and their little moments, but, he refuses to let me really bathe her because she started whining. Jay's only asked once, but Nathan refused since he's been at preschool all week and he wants to be sure Jay didn't pick anything up. He's completely spoiling her already. That might sound normal, but you have to see it to get what I mean. He was never like this with Jay; it was me who went crazy about every little thing."

They all turned their heads when they heard Nathan walk into the living room holding Maddie against his chest.

"What happened to her other clothes? Did she pee through?" Haley asked walking closer.

"No, I just changed her. This is the outfit I brought home with me, do you like it? The other one was really plain but these colors are pretty on her" He looked at Lucas who was holding back a laugh, and then to Brooke and Haley to see them doing the same thing.

He hadn't realized that while he was talking Haley tried to take Maddie from his arms but had no such luck. He maneuvered any and every way to keep her from taking the child from his gentle grasp.

"Babe, you're doing it again, Let Luke see her" she scolded him.

He glanced up at Lucas, then down at his hands. "Did you wash your hands? And Hales, where's your boppy, Luke should use it. But she did just fall back asleep, I'd hate to wake her"

"I think I can manage without her boppy Nate, but thanks. If it makes you feel any better, I'll sit down first."

Nathan walked over to Lucas and gently placed the sleeping baby in his arms before sitting directly beside him on the couch.

Haley stared at Nathan and before she could make a joke, she saw something flash in his eyes that had her worried.

_Fear_

Lucas marveled at his niece all the while Nathan's eyes never left his daughter and his body stayed tense. Haley stood up from her seat and walked over to Nathan, holding her hand out to him. "Come here a second." She saw the questioning look he gave her, and nodded towards their bedroom. "Just come on"

When they made it back into their bedroom, Haley put her hands around his neck keeping his eyes glued to hers. "She's fine Nathan… what's going on, you're worrying me. At first I thought it was cute, I mean, I think you've made sure she's gonna be a daddy's girl, but babe, I think it's more than that."

Haley stayed standing when Nathan let go of her and went to sit on the floor, leaning against their bed. He stared at the unlit fireplace that sat in their room and kept his head in his hands while trying to explain what he was feeling.

"I don't want to miss anything and I already feel like I'm gonna miss everything Hales. Already. I just feel like the clocks ticking away. I…. I leave in like three hours. That's all I have left with her and it's killing me. By the time I see Madeline for the fifth time, she'll already be a whole month old." His eyes filled with tears but he didn't care how broken he looked. It was exactly how he felt. "I was thinking last night about going back today, and started looking through all my paperwork and contracts just to see what my punishment would be if I didn't show up"

"Nathan, you cannot go AWOL. You know that's not a good idea, in fact it's stupid" she knelt down beside him and pried his hands away from blocking her view of his eyes.

"Hey, look at me" prying his hands away from his face, she wiped away the one tear he let escape. Her husband was not one to cry, so she knew this was tearing him apart. "Madeline is _your_ daughter. She's _your Bear._" She watched him crack a smile. In one day it looked as if _Maddie Bear_ was simplifying to _Bear._ "She is two weeks old, and already knows exactly who you are. Baby she knows your voice, your touch, she loves sleeping on her daddy's chest already and every time she's gonna see you will be a special day for her just as much as it will be for you. You won't miss anything Nathan. And she'll be safe, I promise you." Although her husband never uttered a word about it, she knew he was scared of just not being around in general. "She will be just fine and surrounded by people who love her. I promise you."

He leaned his head closer to her and kissed the corner of her mouth before hugging her tightly. "I know you'll take such perfect care of her, I'm just really gonna miss her."

Pushing away from him, she looked down at her shirt and frowned.

"Now _that_, I won't miss" he laughed at the dark, wet spots that were forming on the tank top she wore.

"Shit! Shut up jerk, these feed your precious Bear you know.

Getting out and leaving the room, he had no shame in walking over to Lucas and giving him a stern look. "I leave in about three hours, and won't see my kids for five days. Me and Jay are going out for ice cream after dinner, so until then, she doesn't leave my arms." He scooped Maddie into his arms the same time that Lucas nodded his head, not really caring whether he agreed or not.

He did however sit directly next to his brother. "So what's with the whole Bear name" Lucas asked. "Check this out" He started to unwrap the blanket she was in and showed him her little toes and legs. "I wanted to call her chicken because these legs are so tiny, but I plan on her filling out. You remember how pudgy Jay was don't you? She's gonna be like a little Bear you watch."

Both Scott families ate dinner and when Nathan and Jay returned home from getting their ice cream, Haley was alone in the living room nursing Madeline while Brooke, Lucas and Drew got their shoes and coats on preparing to leave.

"Hey guys" Haley smiled when Jay climbed on the couch next to her and kissed her face.

"Hey Jay, come here a second" he lifted him off the couch "let's go wash your hands, so you can hold your baby sister. That sound like a good idea?"

"Really" he asked excitedly "I can hold her now"

After confirming it would be happening, he took him to the kitchen sink and helped him wash up really well before sitting him on the couch in between himself and Haley. Laying the blanket across his chest and putting the boppy around his small waist, Nathan laid Madeline in her big brothers arms. He beamed up at Haley, his eyes as bright as her own.

"She's so cute mommy! I love her a lot. I'm her big brother and I have to make sure she's okay just like daddy told me" he looked over to his dad for confirmation and smirked when he nodded his head once.

"Brooke, before you leave, can you take a picture? I want Nathan to have a picture of us all before he's gone." Brooke grabbed Haley's, Nathan's and her own iPhone and snapped pictures of the family.

It was a short while later when Nathan looked up from his seat on the couch at Haley. She was leaning against the wall just watching him with a soft, watery smile.

Her heart warmed as she watched him holding Maddie with Jay snuggled into his side also. They were reading Jay's favorite bedtime story, God Gave Me You. Since Brooke handed her back the IPhone, she hadn't stopped snapping pictures of her family and took a few shots of the scene before her.

"Babe, it's time" She picked up the small suitcase she'd just finished packing and walked it to the garage to load it in the truck.

Everything felt as if it were moving in slow motion to Nathan. Hugging Jay didn't seem real. The little boy was sad and it showed. The pout he wore was more welcome than the tears he was expecting. Jay hugged his neck fiercely before planting a loud, wet kiss on Nathan's lips then wiggled out of his arms. Both Haley and Nathan heard the un-paused game come back alive in the living room just seconds later.

When Haley handed Maddie to Nathan, he brought her up to his shoulder and snuggled her in the crook of his neck, inhaling the scent he'd come to love so much. Her face was smothered with kisses, her feather-like hair was patted and her tiny legs were rubbed just so he could feel her soft skin. "Daddy loves you Bear" he whispered to her more than once.

"There's something about seeing you with her that makes me love you even more and I have no idea how that's even possible. We're all going to miss you Nathan Scott." Pushing up on her toes, she kissed him goodbye.

Just as his car pulled out of the driveway, Madeline began crying. "I know. Mommy misses Daddy already too."

* * *

**Ok... How was it.. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, wanted to get a peek in at their little weekend home and to see some Maddie and Nathan moments. Tried to not write a sappy Nathan, but the Army can do that to you, so tried to balance it out well enough. Wasn't exactly what I wanted it to be, but good enough Pay attention to next chapter, you'll probably be confused a little, but don't worry. And I know there hasn't been much Brucas really at all, but I will try to put them in. I just don't really have too much of a reason too, but I'll find one. Thanks for the reviews. Jen**


	18. Chapter 16

**Well here's the new chapter. A little earlier than i planned to post just as a treat :) .. I won't give anything away, but let's just say looks can be somewhat deceiving **** ;) **** I really want you guys to review and tell me what you think of this chapter. Could have been super long, but I wanted to divide these next two chapters on purpose. Enjoy.**

* * *

**Chapter 16: 4 Months Later**

Haley rolled over to the far end of the bed, only to be pulled back to rest on her husbands' chest. Obliging, she waited until his breathing evened out, and once again rolled off, this time receiving a groan in return.

"Baby what are you doing?" he grumbled out

Stretching against him, she moved up so she was face to face with her husband. "Sorry, I have to get used to sharing a bed all night again. You were gone for a long time you know"

"Well you better get used to it. I've been back for a week, and I don't plan on sleeping without you for as long as we both shall live..

He leaned down and kissed her neck, smiling when her head tilted back and allowed him better access to her throat. As soon as Nathan started to move south, a small cry was heard from the monitor on their nightstand. The soft cries quickly turned to full-fledged crying and the two parents could just picture their daughters' dramatic tears falling down the sides of her face.

Sighing, Haley got up and walked out of her room and into the nursery.

Nathan got more relaxed in bed, and prepared himself to listen as his wife talked to their daughter. Every time Haley went to the nursery, she would hold some sort of conversation with the four month old baby.

It had seemed to be a rough couple of nights for both parents. Nathan had gotten up a couple of times with Madeline, and Haley had been at Jay's side when he'd cried out in the middle of the night. He'd been having a few nightmares, and the parents were constantly checking for monsters under his bed and in the closets.

They were both drained from their new schedules they were on. Nathan had been back at the mechanic shop, and checking on everything that he'd missed out on since he'd left months ago. New equipment that he had ordered before he was shipped off was in, and he had to quickly become familiar with it. Also, he wanted nothing more but to get to really know his daughter, and to rekindle his relationship with his son.

Needless to say, things were hectic and if they were both honest, very stressful.

Haley walked into the nursery and peered into the crib. Once she saw her, Madeline let out a pitiful whimper, wondering why she hadn't been lifted in the air and kissed like the woman usually did

_Madeline's POV (sort of)_

Although she was only four months old, the baby realized that when she let her lungs and tears do the talking, she'd get picked up, changed, fed, and sometimes she got her worse nightmare; water. The woman and man would put her in the shiny white thing that had wet stuff in it, and she didn't like it at all. The water part didn't upset her so much, she loved making it splash, but every time it was over she would be freezing. She preferred to be warm like when she drank the white stuff and the man she liked would rub her back while she lay on his chest. Even the woman standing over her had a way of rocking her around the room while that song player over and over again.

Then there was the small boy. He wasn't as small as her, but he wasn't that big either. He always got in her face, and talked really loud sometimes. Something was also wrong with his mouth, because when he said certain words, his tongue would go between his teeth and water would shoot out of his mouth and onto her. There was another little boy too who sort of looked like her little boy that was always there. He usually only came around her when the other boy was there, but he was a loud talker as well. They would sometimes get to hold her, but it was only when the lady or man she loved was there.

There were a few other people she knew and liked a lot, but nothing compared to the lady and man that were always there with her; she really loved them.

_End Madeline's POV_

Finally she was picked up from the comfy crib, and was immediately smothered with the kisses she loved so much. Haley took the baby over to the changing table and laid her on the soft, light brown cushion.

"Mornin' Toots! You didn't sleep so good last night huh? I know, you got daddy up about five times baby. What's going on toots? I know daddy's your favorite, but you gotta go easy on him sometimes. And you're mommy's sweet girl, although mommy doesn't understand how something soooo small, beautiful, and sweet can smell so bad." She continued to change her diaper, and wipe her clean before putting powder on her bottom. "Now, I'm not judging, but you stink Toots. But that's okay because mommy will make you smell powder fresh for when we see the man of our dreams. You know who that is? Can you say daddy? Say daddy. Okay, let's get you a bottle, and then we can go see daddy"

Laying the baby across her arm on her chest, Haley walked into the kitchen carrying her over to the cabinets. Using her free arm, she got out her bottle and formula and mixed her a bottle and added a touch of cereal. When she walked back into the room, she climbed on the bed and handed the bottle to Nathan. Knowing she usually did that if it had cereal in it, he quickly shook it up, and handed her the bottle for Madeline to eat.

Sitting her between her legs, the baby leaned back against her mommy's thighs and waited to be fed. She sat contently drinking her breakfast all the while staring at Nathan like a hawk.

He eyed the small child and wondered what was going through her mind. She was probably laughing at him inside; happy with keeping him up all night. He'd fought with his daughter most of the night, when she refused to sleep. Sure she was gassy, and had a stomach ache, but it was as if she were trying to get back at him for something; she sure was his kid.

Brooke always said that something was wrong with her daughter seeing as the small baby could just look at you for a long period of time without blinking. She even went so far as to tease Haley that her daughter was possessed. She was said to get it from her father; him being the only one that could stare at her just as long. He called his Bear _hardcore_ and would gloat on how she could stare down the best of them; she wouldn't take any shit from anyone.

You could easily make a silly face at the young baby, and if she was up to it, she's let out the biggest grin. It was a heart snatchers grin.

Like her momma, she was also a blusher, and when her daddy continued to play peek-a-boo with her, the blush turned into a grin causing the clear nipple to come out of her mouth; milk running down her chin.

"ewww Bear, you a nasty baby" Nathan said scrunching his face up at his daughter.

He reached forward and used his thumb to wipe the side of her mouth where the milk had drained and wiped it on her shirt. He ran his hand over her somewhat _now_ wavy hair and let his mind wander.

Haley had brought up cutting just a bit of her hair soon, but he just ignored her. She was constantly picking at him, trying to get under his skin when it came to _his_ Bear. Sure it was way long, and constantly got in her eyes, but if it were up to him, they'd never cut her hair. At the very least, she'd get her first cut when she turned a year, just like Jay had. It was tradition.

Both Haley and Nathan did enjoy jotting down all the fun milestones in the baby's short life. They had been just as persistent on filling out her baby book as they had with Jason's. They had kept up with all the first in their sons' life, and had the tapes to prove most of them; their daughter wouldn't be any different.

"So when can we go get my son?" Haley asked breaking his train of thought.

Lucas and Brooke had driven to visit his parents for the weekend and had offered to take Jay with them. They knew he could use the spoiling of his grandparents, and wanted to spend time with their nephew.

"Luke is gonna bring him back in the morning. Don't worry, he's being spoiled by mom and dad."

"He's already spoiled." She countered back.

"Yea, well he's getting a little wary of Mads, so he needed some attention. It's natural for him to be that way; he was an only child for like four years"

"I guess you're right, he'll like her once she's older and can play with him. He thinks she's broken or something since she can't do much."

He picked the baby up from his wife's lap and began to burp her, knowing it wouldn't take long; she was a burp-er like her daddy.

Haley took a look at her daughter, and couldn't believe that it had already been nearly five whole months since she was born. "I don't want her to get big so fast, but I can't wait until she's crawling and getting into everything; walking and talking. I miss having a baby that age."

"Hopefully she'll take after me" he said grinning. "I already got two motor mouths"

"Jerk. How about I start prepping her to call you Sugar Pie" she said knowing he hated the name his grandmother consistently called him.

"You don't listen to a word that _Haley_ says' my pretty girl"

She scoffed at that. "Yea cause _that's_ appropriate"

"What?"

"_Pretty girl_? You do realize that's what your brother calls his wife! Don't call her that, it's ... gross" she said while grimacing

"Why is that gross?" he asked amusedly confused

"Cause they are in love" she said as a matter of fact.

"And what? I'm not in love with my daughter?"

"You know what I mean" she said rolling her eyes.

"She's a pretty girl, and she's mine... besides, she knows she's really my Bear. And _you_ really can't talk Hales, you call her _tits"_

"I do not! It's Toots, not _tits_. Don't make fun, she loves it."

"I know she does" he looked at the girl on his chest, and saw that she had fallen back to sleep.

_It was still pretty early._

"She's out Hales" he said leaning back into the pillow.

"Good, we can get some more sleep.

With Madeline lying on his chest, Haley curled up next to him, excited to get in some extra sleep.

* * *

Waking up a few hours later, he wasn't surprised to see his girls still sleep. Maneuvering Madeline to lay against his wife, he went to use the bathroom then made his way out of the room to start on dinner.

One of the perks of having a infant and it being the weekend was that you could sleep as much as they did, and by the time you woke up, it was late enough to start up dinner. At least tonight it was.

They'd practically slept the day away after having such a rough night with Maddie, so with it being a little after four already, he wanted to start on their hearty meal. They both weren't fans of eating late at night and usually sat down for dinner no later than five thirty. Just before bed last night, Haley had made it perfectly clear that she wanted steak, mashed potatoes and broccoli for dinner; and he of course wasn't going to deny her.

With the girls still asleep, he seasoned the meat and thoroughly pounded the meat as softly as possible. Nathan placed them back in the fridge, letting them soak for a while in the homemade marinade his wife perfected.

He walked into the living room and flipped on the TV, immediately seeing one of his reminders pop up. He couldn't live without those pop-ups and knew he would forget about the game tonight if it weren't for them.

After being lost in the game for a good fifteen minutes, Nathan cheered on the Spurs quietly, but when they took the lead, all his whereabouts were out the window and a loud cheer flooded the walls of the house. He quickly scolded himself when he realized just how loud he was and heard a small cry from his bedroom. There was a possibility that he could get lucky and she would go back to sleep, and Haley would never be disturbed.

"Damn" he muttered when his daughters' cry only grew. He made his way back into the room and although Haley was barely awake, she was definitely glaring at him.

"Sorry Baby, let me take her"

"She should be hungry by now. She needs to wake up or she'll be up all night again and she definitely stinks" she said sitting up lifting her shirt and bra. As soon as the baby latched on, all you could hear were the sucking noises she was making while she ate. Haley had planned to stop nursing weeks ago, but Maddie wasn't having it. She hadn't taken too well to formula and after about a week all Haley's consistency paid off. But of course, with her father's temperament, Madeline still _convinced _Haley to nurse her.

Haley settled on twice a day, and the rest was formula. She usually nursed her before they put her down for bed, and for the first feeding in the morning.

"Maybe I should give her a bath, we have to sooner or later" Haley quietly suggested. This was still a sore topic.

Nathan looked up at his wife with wide eyes, 'But she hates baths, and she's gonna scream her head off"

"Yea and I think I should be the one to do it, the last time you practically cried just as much as she did. So you can't be in there, cause once she cries, you'll start your whining, and it'll just make her cry more."

"Haley, I did not cry. I'm more than capable of giving my daughter a bath thank you very much."

Wanting to prove him wrong, she fixed her shirt and handed the already whining infant to her husband and stood up. "Go ahead, I'll finish _my_ steaks" she said not looking at him. She hated that he couldn't admit to being wrong. She would give him five minutes before he was calling for her to finish the bath.

Nathan walked into the nursery and laid out Madeline's small hooded towel. Laying her on the changing table, he cleaned her dirty butt and brought her to the blue, white, and yellow room across the hall. Sitting on the side of the tub, and holding her on his lap, he turned on the water and twisted the knob until it was just the right temperature and filled the small tub.

Taking a deep breath, he slowly dipped the naked baby into the water and cringed when her eyes instantly locked on his.

"I know baby, I know. You're warm, it's okay" he tried

He almost caved when her bottom lip poked out and the first whimper escaped her mouth, pleading for her daddy to stop; and that's what she did for the seven minute bath, making Nathan feel like the devil.

Once she was out of the tub and dried off, he secured her bottom with a Huggies Cuddle Wave diaper, and searched through the drawer on the changing table.

"You okay now huh? Now that you're nice and warm, you gonna let daddy put some lotion on ya? It'll make you smell so good, cause let's face it, you can be pretty stinky sometimes. Daddy did good huh? I can show mommy I'm no wuss- I can give you a bath without freaking out."

Once the lotion was on, he put a simple pink onsie on her, a pair of soft booties, then sat her in the swing that was in the living room.

Walking into the kitchen, he smiled cockily when he saw his wife finishing up dinner, and dancing to the music that was playing. He shook his head at the r&b song that was playing and wasn't surprised at all. His wife listened to any and every kind of music that there was and when he would question it, all she'd say was "I'm just being open to everything"

"What is that?" he said coming behind her and kissing her cheek.

"New Cd" she answered simply. "So I heard her crying… sure you don't need a few minutes alone" she said with a smirk on her face.

"Well she was better than last time. I think she'll get used to it pretty soon, and I am perfectly fine."

She handed him the plate she made him, and grabbed hers. Following him out into the living room, the two sat on the couch and decided on a movie to watch.

Letting their _real_ problems stay hidden inside.

* * *

During the next few days, Haley found herself gradually becoming more distant from her husband.

It had been nearly five months since Madeline was born and they had plenty of alone time, but her husband hadn't tried being intimate with her in the past three weeks.

Haley knew their schedules were hectic and he was still adjusting to full time work, father, and husband, but so was she. Lately all she received was a peck on the cheek, forehead, and every now and then on the lips. She couldn't understand why his interest wasn't there, but her mind quickly found a reason.

She knew her body had changed some when she'd gotten pregnant with Jay, and although she went back to her normal weight, she could only conclude that having another baby, really changed her body. He couldn't have still been attracted to her, and as much as she understood, her guilt and self conscious got the best of her.

Getting up that morning, she predicted the empty feeling that lingered in their bedroom. Once she freshened up, she followed the laughing she heard into the living room and saw Nathan and the kids watching one of Jay's movies.

"Mommy" he called out excitedly, something she never got tired of hearing.

Spotting his mother, the young boy ran to her and leaped into her arms. Since the months passed after his sisters' birth, he'd been getting a lot of his attention back and loved it. For a while it had just been him and his mommy, and now he made sure he had special time with her everyday. He had a soft spot for his mommy and the feeling was mutual.

"Hey baby, what are you doing"

"Watching my movie with Daddy and Maddie" he leaned in closer when she kissed his face and ran her fingers through his dark wavy hair.

"Did you eat?"

"Not hungry" he had already gone back to staring at the television screen.

"Well you need to ear something, come on, you can have some yogurt."

"He's not hungry"

She would have never guessed those would be the first words her husband uttered to her this morning; a contradiction to her parenting their son

"But he needs to eat" she persisted.

"_But_ he doesn't want anything right now" it was simple to him, why make him eat right away when he didn't want to; he could eat later without the world ending.

"Madeline hates baths, should we stop bathing her? Exactly" she childishly rolled her eyes at her husband.

"What crawled up your ass today" he muttered

"Definitely wasn't you, and don't curse in front of my kids" she placed Jay down on the ground and glared at Nathan.

"_Your_ kids? Don't even go there Haley"

She bowed her head, and waited before she spoke again.

"You know I didn't mean it like that... you know what, whatever, just leave me alone."

"Did you just start your period or something?"

"I said leave me alone Nathan"

"Why, so you can close yourself off like you always do when things get tough?"

Choosing to ignore him, she turned to Jay "Baby, go play in your room"

"But my movie" he started to protest.

"You can watch it later, go play in your room now"

Scooping up Madeline in her arms, she took the baby to her crib and turned on the soft music. Marching back into the living room, she spoke in a seething, quiet voice.

"Get out"

"What?" he questioned confused. There was no way his wife just asked him to leave.

"I want you to leave now" her eyes never wavering.

"Whatever, I'm not about to fight with you while _our_ kids are in the next room"

"I'm so pissed at you right now Nathan, I don't even want to look at you"

"What the hell did I do wrong Haley? You wake up mad at the damn world and take it out on me or something?"

"NO! But I did wake up alone, _again_. I don't want to talk about this right now, not when they can hear us, Just leave and I'll talk to you later"

"I'm not leaving my house. You can cool off somewhere, but I'm staying right here"

"Fine!" she said while turning on her heel. "Then I'll leave"

Before she could get two feet away, Nathan grip on her arm stopped her. "No you're not" she fought against his hold, and glared up at him angrily. "You're not about to go anywhere Haley"

"Yea, and you're not my father Nathan"

"But I'm your husband, and you're too upset to be driving. If you really want me to leave, then I will, but you're not about to go driving anywhere" he said with finality.

Despite and tightness of his jaw, and the firm grip on her arm, she could see the concern and love in his eyes, and her eyes immediately softened. "I won't go"

Nathan stared at his wife and could feel his heart actually hurting at the tears that rolled down her cheeks.

"You want me to leave?" he asked in a gentle, calm voice.

"No, it's alright. I'm sorry, I'm just gonna go lay back down."

"We need to talk about this Haley" his voice stopping her mid-step.

"I know"

"You know I love you" he whispered.

"I know"

* * *

Later that night, Nathan left Jay's room from tucking him in alone. Haley hadn't talked to him at all the rest of the day, and basically hibernated in their room. She hadn't left the bedroom for anything that day, not even food, leaving him alone to care for their children.

Walking into the room he shared with his wife, Nathan stripped down to his boxers, and climbed into the bed beside her. Leaning over her still body, that he knew was awake, he kissed her cheek, letting his lips linger there longer than normal.

"You love me?" he whispered at her ear.

"Always and forever"

He barely heard the whisper that escaped her lips, but was thrilled that he did. Kissing her one last time, he turned over and went to sleep, desperately wanting to hold his wife, but knowing he shouldn't push her just yet.

* * *

**Hate me? Hope you enjoyed as much can be expected. 5 REVIEWS UNLOCK THE NEXT CHAPTER, so get to reviewing if you want to find out what happens next.**


	19. Chapter 17 I Shall Believe

**I know a lot of you are upset and confused about the rift in Naley's seemingly perfect life, but if you go back and re-read it, you'll read about the stress they've been pushing to the back burner and not dealing with. I'll try to go further into detail in this chapter to clear some things up as best as I can without going too off track. I know someone wanted to know how Nathan was able to come home and everything, and since it was asked I'll try to explain that, although it's simply that he wasn't sent into action.**

**I have some great faithful readers, and we talk often about how grateful I am for the reviews and feedback they send me, and i wanted to thank everyone that did review for last chapter! It really encouraged me to update even sooner! Being a Full-Time Nanny, and Live in Aunt with 3 nephews, it's not always as easy to get time along to think and write, to when i do, it takes a lot of time, planning, and staying up way past anyone's bedtime! lol So words of encouragement are always welcomed and appreciated! I'm a reviewer that rambles on and on about how much i loved it so dont worry if that's you too, i love those kind of reviews lol. Also, a new reader, Denise REALLLLLY was the reason i updated today! Her review of a chapter really encouraged me and made me realize why i like to write! So enjoy this chapter although it's definitely shorter :) Thanks sooo much everyone**** and please please please review!**

* * *

**Chapter 17: **

**I Shall Believe**

When you think of the perfect day, you think of waking up to the smell of your favorite breakfast, your favorite beverage at your bedside, your favorite song being played, and your favorite person smiling down at you. So when Nathan Scott looked around, he realized that this would _not _be a perfect day.

Usually being the first one up, he was surprised to find his bed empty and his house eerily quiet; something it _definitely_ hadn't been lately. He never imagined his homecoming resulting to where he was today.

_**FLASHBACK:**_

_Nathan stood up straight and tall as his General addressed his unit._

"_Now as you might have already heard, out of the eighty men that were in the field yesterday during the attack, only thirty-six came out breathing. We've been given orders to cease all deporting and to fall back. The Secretary of Defense has issued a new approach, and as of now, we are not apart of it. When you are dismissed you will go back to your bunks and pack your belongings. Gentlemen, you're going home."_

_When the General left the room, the identical-dressed men looked around unbelievingly. It had to be a mistake. They were to be shipped off to join their brothers across the globe in the horrendous fight within ten hours. _

_Wasn't Ashton Kutcher gonna pop out any second and laugh in their faces? This was Punk'd right?_

"_Hell's yea!" The ninety-some-odd men in the room turned to look at one of the "class clowns" and saw him clap his feet before running out of the huge room and off to his bunk. Finally getting the memo, and realizing it was real, they all did the same thing and went to pack up._

_They were actually going home._

_After signing out, Nathan said goodbye to a lot of his friends and loaded his SUV, and soon enough was on the highway. He could imagine the look on Haley's face when he showed up in the middle of the night; she would be so happy to see him._

_And although when he first climbed into bed with her, she'd been terrified and tried her best to get away from his grasp, as soon as she heard his hushed voice promising her that it was okay, she was relaxed again._

_It had been the homecoming he dreamt about, and the next morning was perfection. He woke up to the smell of Strawberry Toaster Strudels and a bottle of Gatorade at his bedside. This Years Love was playing on the IHome next to the bed, and his beautiful wife was perched up over him, straddling his waist with a dazzling smile covering her face._

_**END OF FLASHBACK**_

Yea, it definitely wasn't the perfect morning. Even though his perfect mornings would be altered a little, they were still perfect to him. Whether it was waking up to his wife laying their screaming daughter next to him before retreating to their guest room to get back to sleep, Jay running in the room at the crack of dawn ready to play, or his wife simply snuggling into him further to block out the morning sun; those days were perfect.

He hadn't had one of those in a while.

After a blissed out weekend, and celebration of him coming home with his whole family, reality set back in and things got hectic. In addition to having a four month old and a four _year _old in the house, he had started back up managing his Auto Repair shop. There had been tons of relearning and catching up to do on all the new equipment they had ordered in, new employees to meet, and sales and bills to check over. He was swamped, but was still happy to be home.

When he first arrived home, there was still help. Jake had already left, but Peyton had a few days left in town, and had been an amazing help to Haley while he wasn't there. Lucas and Brooke helped as much as possible, but they still had a son to take care of and a house to fix up while working. They were also going through a small rough patch. The question of having another baby were on their minds and they weren't able to agree on the now or later aspect. He didn't want to over exert them like he already was.

He also had to get back into the role of being a full time dad again. He hadn't been home with his kids for six-plus months, and the things that had come natural to him, had to be oiled and polished. Jay had gotten used to not having him around, so he automatically went to Haley for every need that he had. The hours that Nathan were used to, were way off his families schedule and he had to wean himself off his military schedule immediately. He knew that Haley wasn't happy with him at the moment and knew that he had to make more time for them, but he had no idea how to do that. By the time they were done with work, and the kids, there was no real time for them as a couple.

He hadn't even gotten a chance to catch up with his brothers' family and all their traveling adventures.

Nathan Scott was a basket case, trying to get by as easily as possible without going completely insane. Falling back against his pillow, he let out an aggravated sigh, praying for a miracle today. He'd never felt so disconnected from his wife and it was wearing on their family.

* * *

_**One Hour Earlier**_

Haley Scott grimaced at the pain that she felt in her abdomen that morning and knew she couldn't ignore it any longer. She hadn't eaten anything the previous day, and was now feeling the consequences of her immature actions. Lying back against her pillows she looked next to her and realized that her day would _suck_ once again. Her husband was lying on his stomach, faced down in his pillow on the further end of the large bed.

Neither cuddled to the other that night, no legs rubbing against one another to break the ice; it was complete avoidance on both ends.

Haley didn't expect to keep things from Nathan, and allow her feelings to be bottled up inside, she just didn't want to stress him out even more than he already was. Needless to say, her _pushing-it-to-the-back-burner_ approach only did them bad. Yesterday was the first argument they'd had with the kids awake and present, and she felt terrible about it. Yes, families fought, but she never wanted her kids to witness it at that young age.

Even when Nathan crawled into bed last night, all Haley could do was think of how disgusted she was at herself. The hostility in her voice, and how she treated him was something she wasn't proud of at all. All things simply led back to her insecurities.

She was away from her husband for nearly six and a half months, and it brought her back to when they first started going out, and needing all of him. She had been in love with him for as long as she could remember, but it had taken her a while to reveal those feelings simply because there was always so much distance between them.

The visits had been great, but the fact that they hardly saw each other played with her mind and emotions. It brought her back to the saying _Out of sight, Out of mind_, and would slowly eat away her trust in their relationship. She didn't know if it were her parents' disapproval of her getting married and having Jay so early, or to the horrible memories of her senior year of college.

Whatever it was, she allowed it to cloud her judgment and hold a grudge against her stressed out husband.

Climbing out of bed, she quietly freshened up and got dressed before getting a glass of orange juice to hold her over until she could get some breakfast. Going to Madeline's nursery, she changed and dressed the half sleep baby, and strapped her in her car seat by the garage door. Turning on her automatic start, she let the car warm up, while she got Jay up and dressed. Once he was done, she loaded the kids in with the diaper bag, and left.

* * *

Just thirty minutes later, after a small breakfast at Panera, Haley found herself contemplating the conversation she had to have with Nathan, while keeping an eye on Jay at the park. She had planned on dropping by Brooke's to see her sister and venting to her about the past few weeks, but Jay's puppy dog eyes begged her to stop at the park for a while. She did feel bad for dragging them out of bed and interrupting their sleep so it was the least she could do. Maddie still hadn't woken up, and Jay was running around like a wild child. She had talked to a few of the parents she knew from Jay's school that were there, before she sat down at a nearby bench with Madeline asleep in her stroller simply wanting to be alone.

When she felt her phone vibrating against her thigh, she wondered if it were Nathan, and checked her phone to see Brooke's picture and name flashing. Glancing at Jay and seeing that he was fine, she answered the call.

"Hey" she said casually

"Hey Love, what's up?"

"Nothing at all, Jay begged me to take him to the park this morning"

"Oh, does Nate have Scottie?" Haley grimaced at the nickname her best friend had started calling her daughter. Brooke knew she hated it the name, it sounded like a dog's name.

"No, he does not have _Madeline_, she's in her stroller asleep. I have no idea where he is, nor do I care.

"Well everything is finally moved in and random people are done coming in and out of my house" she knew the world of Naley wasn't doing great as of now, but didn't want to get into that until they were face to face.

Haley could only laugh at her. "Brooke you guys have been back for months, you're just done unpacking?

"Not really, we had a whole 'nother room to decorate, then the guest bedroom and we got Drew a new room set. The one he had before was Lucas' old one, and had to be thrown out. So now that all of the new editions are finally done, you guys should come over for dinner. I promise it's clutter free, paint fumes free, and it's lovely."

"Well that depends on what you're making" she knew her sister in law could only conjure up a few meals without the poison control being called.

"Chicken Parmesan" she said proudly with an all knowing smile on her face.

"We'll be there by seven sharp. I'm gonna go, so I'll see you later"

Haley looked up at Jay, and saw him hanging upside down on the large jungle gym. As loudly as she could without waking Madeline, she called out to her adventurous son, "Jay, get down before you fall"

The short statured boy swung down and once his feet were on the ground, he ran over to his mother and baby sister.

"Jay, you need to stay off that thing..."

"But mommy" he said interrupting her. "Daddy taught me how to climb it, I can do it" he said pleadingly.

"No, you're gonna get hurt. You can go and play on the slide, and I don't want to see you on that thing again.

With Jay running off, and the wind picking up, she instantly caught a whiff of her sleeping daughter.

"Woo, toots baby, you stink!"

Haley got out the changing pad, and laid her across her lap and started to change the dirty diaper. Being the observant mother that she was, once she got the wipes out, she glanced over at the slide searching for Jay. When she couldn't find him after looking through the dozen kids running around, she looked over at the jungle gym and once again saw him atop the jungle gym upside down. "Jay! Get down right now before I have to hurt you young man!"

Her loud screams frightened Madeline, and she promptly let out a shrill, heartbreaking cry. Trying her best to wipe her bottom faster, Haley could feel something bad about to happen. Strapping the diaper on the infant, and still trying to calm her cries, she heard Jay scream out her name.

By the time her eyes locked on his, she'd witnessed him fall off the top bar and his leg hit the rail below him before he finally hit the ground; face first.

Laying the screaming baby into the stroller, Haley rushed over to where Jay's lifeless body lay on the woodchips. She didn't want to move him since she wasn't sure of his injuries, but turned him over on his back anyway.

"Jay! Wake up baby, come on" she started to pick the woodchips off his face, noticing that some were cut into his skin and used her sleeve to wipe away the blood that covered his face. She heard one of the parents behind her on the phone with the police and telling them to send an ambulance right away.

"Can someone please get my daughter, please help me" she was hysterical now seeing her son unresponsive to her request. She knew he had a pulse and could clearly see that he was breathing, but he wasn't awake and she wasn't sure what to do next. Pulling the cell phone out of her jacket pocket, she hit the speed dial button and he picked up on the third ring.

"Hello?"

"Nathan!" she sobbed into the phone relieved to hear his voice at the moment.

"Hales? What's wrong?" he could tell she was crying and knew immediately that something was wrong. He instantly stood up from bed and started pacing.

"Nathan, you need to come now" it was only a second later that she heard the EMT's running up to her and moving her aside so that they could tend to Jay.

"Haley, calm down. Where are Jay and Maddie?" He was quick to slip his tennis shoes on before throwing on a shirt, and running to his car.

"We're at the park, Jay fell and he's hurt bad, I don't know how hurt he is, but he won't wake up Nathan. I'm so scared, I need you here."

"I'm on my way now, did anyone call 911?"

"Yea, one of the parents did, they're about to load him in the ambulance."

"Okay, I'll meet you at the hospital, I'm on my way Hales. I love you" he wanted to do whatever he could to calm her down, but knew she wouldn't really be calm until Jay was safe in her arms.

Although she knew Nathan was still talking, all she could focus on was her baby boy lying across the stretcher with a breathing mask and neck brace attached to him. When she brought her hands to cover the sob that threatened to escape, her phone landed in the mulch, and she only recovered it when another thought entered her mind.

Asking the EMT's to give her one second, she dialed one more number.

"Hey, what's up, I just talked to you" Brooke asked when she saw it was Haley calling her once again.

"Brooke, there was an accident, Jay fell off the playground and he's unconscious. The ambulance is here and we're about to leave, but Maddie's here with Rachel from Jay's school, Lila's mom. Can you come get her?"

"Yea, okay. But he's gonna be okay right Haley?" She immediately thought the worse as she got Drew from his room, and started towards the car.

"I hope so"

"Well I'm on my way now, so I'll call you when I have her"

"Hold on one second Brooke." Haley walked over to where Rachel was holding her howling daughter. "Umm, my sister Brooke Scott is coming to pick her up right now, you can give her the bottle in her bag, it should calm her. Thank you so much Rachel, she'll be right here." She kissed Madeline's head and walked away from the screaming child, hating to do so. "Brooke, they'll be here waiting for you, she's getting a bottle now and it's her first one, I'll call you soon."

Once she hung up, she called her husband back, as she climbed into the ambulance beside Jay.

"Haley! What happened?" he had been worried sick when she'd just hung the phone up.

"I'm sorry I'm okay, we're in the ambulance now so we'll meet you there. I gotta get off the phone though, I love you."

"Love you too"

He hung up the phone and tried his best to concentrate on the road in front of him. He could tell his wife was scared by her high-pitched cries, and wished he could have already been there. About twelve and a half minutes later, his car was parked and he raced into the emergency room doing the only thing he could think of.

Scream his wife's name.

He was terrified, and being in the actual hospital only caused his worry to increase. His son, his baby boy was somewhere in the hospital and Nathan felt like someone was stabbing him in the heart. He knew he should be thinking positive, but the only thing that ran through his mind was the last time his boy was in a hospital. He was only an infant and his terrible cold had gotten worse leaving his mother to rush him to the ER alone. It was the worse day of his life knowing that his baby was hurting and even more so since he wasn't there to help.

_Come to me now  
And lay your hands over me  
Even if it's a lie  
Say it will be alright  
And I shall believe_

All of his screaming paid off when he heard his name being called by the most recognizable voice to him. Haley. Turning around, he saw her come through the double doors, and clobbering into his awaiting arms sobbing. He looked up when he felt a tap on his shoulder and saw a nurse motioning for him to follow her. Still holding his wife against him, Nathan followed the women back to a small empty room that he could only assume to be his son's. Asking the nurse to give them a minute, he took a seat in the chair next to the bed and pulled his wife into his lap, allowing her to let out all her emotions and tears.

Minutes later, Haley looked up and felt her heart break at the site of her husband's tears making a path from his eyes. Kissing him softly, she wiped his tearstained face, allowing him to do the same to her.

"First, I love you, so much Haley"

"I know. I love you too."

"Second, where's Maddie?" he had been worried when he'd seen his wife empty handed.

"She's still at the park, I left her with one of the parent's I know well from Jay's school. I umm, I called Brooke and asked her to get her. She should have gotten her by now and called, but she's okay"

Nodding his head, he asked his final question. "Third, what happened baby?" His question was soft and understanding, knowing that his wife had already started to blame herself and question her parenting skills.

_I'm broken in two  
And I know you're on to me  
That I only come home  
When I'm so all alone  
But I do believe_

"We went to the park, and I was sitting with Toots and I saw him climbing the jungle gym and when I told him to get down and he didn't listen, I threatened him"

She smiled at the last part, as did Nathan. Jay was like his daddy, and didn't take too well to threats.

"Then what?" he said kissing her hand that was slightly shaking.

She continued to tell him the rest of the story from changing Maddie to her feeling something bad was about to happen.

"...then I heard him yell my name and when I looked up at him, I saw his eyes, and he was so scared Nathan. It broke my heart just to see him that scared..."

Nathan sat there trying his best to be strong and not shed anymore tears, but it was clearly hard not to.

_That not everything is gonna be the way  
You think it ought to be  
It seems like every time I try to make it right  
It all comes down on me  
Please say honestly you won't give up on me  
And I shall believe  
And I shall believe_

"...so I flipped him over and there were woodchips all over his face, and some had cut him and I tried wiping the blood off his face with my sleeve but there... there.."

"There what?" he said when she couldn't finish.

"There was a lot of blood, and in the ambulance his eye was swelling up and he doesn't even look like my baby anymore. He has a cracked bone in his leg and a concussion for sure. He has to get stitches for the cuts on his lip, and it's all my fault. When I saw him on the ground I couldn't even help him. I'm a nurse Nathan, and I froze instead of helping the most important patient ever. I couldn't... I couldn't even help our son." She said crying once again.

"He'll be fine Haley. We both know how strong and stubborn he is. He would have climbed that jungle gym either way; he's headstrong like his momma"

"He's four Nathan! He shouldn't have to be in a hospital getting some CT scan and being sedated."

"But he's alive right? Just a few bumps and bruises?" he had to make her see how lucky they were. Their son was still alive.

_Open the door  
And show me your face tonight  
I know it's true  
No one heals me like you  
And you hold the key_

He continued once she nodded her head. "Then thank God, because he could have hit his head or neck instead of his leg. We're so blessed Haley"

"I know, I just..."

Before she could finish, her phone vibrated, and she answered it.

"Hey Brooke"

"Hey, I got her and we're back at my house"

"How is she" she had been worried about leaving her daughter, but she did trust Rachel.

"She's good now, but was pissed off and being dramatic when I got there. Once I got her, she calmed down and I finished feeding her, then she fell asleep on the ride home. Did you get in touch with Nate?"

"Yea, he's here now"

"How's Jay doing? Any word?"

"Not too much, I know that he's got a concussion, gonna have to get stitches, and a cracked bone on his leg maybe. Other than that, we're just waiting around. He's getting a CT scan right now and I demanded an ultrasound to make sure there's no internal bleeding. But I've just been really freaking out"

"And you have _every_ right to. Keep me posted, and don't worry about Mads tonight. If I need anything, I'll go over and get it. Oh, you left your purse with her stroller and I have it, so let me know if you want me or Luke to bring it up there"

After hanging up, she turned to her husband. "Toots is good, Brooke is gonna keep her for the night. I could swipe my ID and go back there, but I left my purse and it's with Brooke."

_Never again  
would I turn away from you  
I'm so heavy tonight  
But your love is alright  
And I do believe_

"It's okay, just try to calm down. And remember, no matter what you think, it's not your fault. None of it okay"

"I know but I should have been watching him more closely. What was thinking taking him there anyway? I know it was too big for him to play on and that I couldn't run around after him with Madeline there too."

"Hey! It's not your fault, and that's final. In all honesty, it's my fault."

"What? You weren't even there Nathan"

"Exactly! I should have been there. Letting you take a four year old and a four month old to the park alone..."

"But you didn't know I was taking them there... I never told you" she spoke softly. Underneath it all, it was her fault.

"No ones to blame. Tonight, we talk. Once Jay's in bed we talk. We know better than this Haley, we have to communicate with each other. I love you too much to let some fight between us put our lives and our kids' lives at risk. I know you feel the same."

"Always and forever right"

"Always and forever Hales"

_That not everything is gonna be the way  
You think it ought to be  
It seems like every time I try to make it right  
It all comes down on me  
Please say honestly  
You won't give up on me  
And I shall believe  
I shall believe_

Pulling her head towards his, he kissed her lips softly.

Their love could and would never fail. Things were skewed at times, but overall, they'd always find their way back. They had too much to lose.

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**Thanks guys so much for reading, and I hoped that you truly enjoyed this and that all your questions were answered. So things aren't exactly back on track with our Naley, but they've straightened up and acknowledged that they have to fix what's obviously broken in their relationship right now. So... we shall see what happens in the next chapter! Please Review! 10 REVIEWS UNLOCK THE NEXT CHAPTER! Thanks... Jen**


	20. Chapter 18 Anytime

**Hi everyone! Honestly, i was a little dissapointed wit the reviews on the previous chapter. I only recieved 2 of them out of the 300+ hits i got... but those 2 reviews meant the world to me, so thank you for them. I did get a great amount of hits, and I'm just ready to update!**

** I really hope that you enjoy this one, especially after having some rough patches with Naley back there. This was actually a short chapter, so I'll be adding the next chapter along with it as one to make it longer. Now I will warn you all, this chapter is for mature audiences, so it might get a little "R" in there! That was your warning. The story is M, but there hasn't been much mature themes in there, but this chapter will be. Enjoy this chapter, and PLZ review- Jen**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of OTH or it's characters!,, haha I've never done that before. And I must say I had help with the big scene and they know who they are, so props to you .**

* * *

**Chapter 18:**

**Anytime**

Haley stood in front of the stove frying fish and fighting off the headache her son was giving her. Madeline was being mommy's angel and happily reached for the colorful objects that hung from the swing she sat in. Jay, on the other hand, was being as whinny as his father could be when he didn't feel well. "Well at least I have one angelic child" she thought out loud... out loud and all the while too soon. She looked over at the five month old and saw her daughter start to dramatically shed big sloppy tears.

"_At least she can't talk yet"_. Haley thought.

"It still itches mommy" Jay whined, lip poked all the way out.

Ignoring both children, she put two raw seasoned fillets in the grease, and stirred the corn next to it. Hearing her husband come in, Haley turned around with an evil glare on her face.

"You okay Hales?" he walked warily towards her once he saw her face.

He had gone out to pick up Jay's second prescription and tried to be as quick as possible.

"Why would you ask that?" she said coming over to greet him.

"Well Bear, our five month old is screaming her head off, and our four year old son Jason, well he's balling his eyes out on the floor. And you're just cooking."

He pulled her in for a hug, and kissed her forehead grateful that he was able to hold her in his arms again.

"I'm trying not to go crazy. Jay won't listen when I tell him to stop trying to scratch his leg, and he just got popped because I told him more than once to not stick pens in his cast to scratch it. So he's mad at me"

"And Bear?"

"Well when I declared out lout that I have one angelic child, she decided to become dramatic and cry for no reason. She's at an age where she can cry and as long as it's not uncontrollably, she'll be fine. Listen to her, it's the _I want to be picked up now_ cry, and I needed to finish dinner." She looked over at her children that were now quiet and staring at the two of them. "They are SO your children" rolling her eyes, she went back to the stove. She took the last two pieces out of the grease, and turned the stove off.

"Okay, well you do dinner, and I'll get them ready for bed"

"Good call, but first..." coming back over, she timidly pulled his head down to hers and kissed him softly on the lips. "I'm gonna go get in the shower, can you feed them? Jay's already washed up, and Toots just needs a few ounces of water. She should go down easy."

"Yea, I got it, go ahead"

"Thank you, then we can finally talk once their down"

He simply nodded.

It had been two days since the accident at the park. Jay was kept overnight, and then released the next afternoon. Last night they stayed up with their son, making sure he was well adjusted to having the cast on his small leg. Neither Haley nor Nathan minded Jay's whining that night, they were just happy that he was okay. The doctors had put him on antibiotics just in case of infection, and a strong pain medication. Haley didn't really want him to be doped up on meds, but they had seen first hand the tears that came from the pain. Being so busy and occupied with him last night, they decided to have their talk about what had been going on the past week, tonight.

When Haley got out of the shower, she walked around cooling off in her robe, and went to Jay's room to say goodnight when she saw Nathan still in the nursery putting Madeline down. When she came back to kiss her daughter goodnight, she saw Nathan walking around quietly singing This Years Love as it played. He was such a sucker when it came to his _Bear_.

"Okay, Papa Bear, time for bed."

She walked to him and smoothed Madeline's soft curls down. Tucking one of her longest curls behind her ear, she kissed the baby's cheek and left out, allowing them more time to cuddle.

Now in her pajamas, Haley sat on the bed flipping through the channels as Nathan walked into the room. He walked over to the fireplace that was across from their bed, and started the artificial flames that were just for show. Grabbing a fresh pair of boxers and a t-shirt, he went into the master bathroom to take a quick shower before re-joining his wife in their bedroom.

When he was done, he was surprised to see the television off, and his wife holding her knees to her chest, a scared look on her face. He knew she had already started conjuring up reasons why things were bad between them. Her mind could go to some dark places, and he didn't want to make her believe any of them were true.

For him, it was simple. Things were just stressful. He knew they hadn't been intimate, but it wasn't that he didn't want her. He always wanted her, but the way things were lately, with him being so busy, and having to place her second, he didn't think he had a right to _have_ her.

When she had her cesarean, the doctor told her that she would need a good four weeks to heal, a week longer than normal. With the normal six weeks after giving birth, and the extra week on top of that, he knew it would be a longer wait than when she had Jay. After the 6 weeks of maternity were up, things had already started to get hectic. Brooke would help keep Madeline, when Haley started to take four, six hour shifts a week and his working kept him busy as well. They had nearly three months that they were allowed to make love, but hadn't yet.

"I really miss you... I miss being with you so much Nathan... why... why won't you make love to me?"

There it was. He wanted to hear it, and she had been honest with him. Sure there were the obvious things. They needed to work out a new schedule where they could have more quality time and communicate with each other on a daily basis, they also needed to get away, and reconnect. He had been gone for such a long time, and as a couple, they needed to be on the right track before trying to bring their children into the mix.

"Is that really what's been bothering you?" he said guiltily.

Haley had never thought of herself as sexy. She had always been shy about that type of thing, and with horny guys at school, she never took any compliments they gave her seriously. She knew they only had one thing on their mind and they'd never get it from her. When she met Nathan things had changed. He'd make her blush, get butterflies, and feel things she had never felt before. She was truly enamored with him, and knew the feelings he had for her were more than just physical. The way her husband made her feel was beyond anything she could have imagined and opened up a side of her she never knew she had.

The thought of that feeling being gone, left her feeling empty inside.

Nodding her head, she wiped the tears from her face before continuing. "I know that having Toots really changed my body, and it might not be the same, but I've been trying to work out... and I'm practically back to my regular..."

He interrupted her before she could even finish. "Do you really think that little of me?" Taking her hand, he pulled her off the bed to stand in front of him. "I love you Haley. No if's, and's or buts' about it. I didn't marry you for your body. I married you because everything about you is what I want and need in my life. You are the most amazing wife, and perfect mother to our children. You carried them, and kept them safe inside of you. Your perfect body _gave_ me those children, and I love it even more because of that. You are perfect to me, you're beautiful in everyway, and there's nothing that could stop me from loving you and your body." He moved closer so their foreheads were touching and whispered softly, but with such force, "Don't you _ever_ think that there's anything you could do, say, think, or look like to make me not love you and want you with everything in me"

She was glad when his arms wrapped around her, because she could feel her knees instantly growing weak at his captivating words. "You mean that? I thought since you hadn't tried to be..."

"Haley, I've been putting you second in everyway since I got back. It's like in training they teach you to keep yourself safe, protect yourself, and be there for your fellow man second. I can't be that way here. I can't put work, myself _or_ the kids before you. If I don't put you first then we don't work, and neither does our family. This family is the best part of me, but _you_ have to be first, even before the kids. If there's no us, then there's no them. I'm sorry for not realizing how incredible you are, and making sure you knew that. Trust me when I say, I've wanted nothing more than to make love to you since I got home, but I honestly don't even deserve you Haley. I haven't been worthy of feeling that kind of pleasure and love from you in a long time"

He had never felt so disgusted with himself for treating his wife like she didn't matter. He knew she was the best thing that ever happened to him, and he should be making sure she knew that everyday of her life. "Your needs are important to me Haley, but the need that I have for you, the desire that I have, I don't even deserve it. But God knows I want to so bad"

Feeling her heart swell at his words, she leaned in and kissed him tenderly on his lips. "You deserve me Nathan. I promise you deserve me."

Feeling his wife's lips on his, immediately sent a surge of fire throughout Nathan's body. His loins burned just tasting her, and he knew she could feel the heat radiating off of him. "You deserve me" she whispered against his lips.

And _that_ was _all_ it took.

"I love you so much," Nathan whimpered as he leaned down to capture her lips in a hungry kiss.

The second he had walked back into the room, he remembered exactly why he loved this woman so much. The second he laid eyes on her again he needed her, to kiss her, touch her, and love her. Haley whimpered as well, leaning into his body, wrapping her arms around his neck. They were both crying now, the connection between them so emotional it was overwhelming. They continued to kiss fiercely, passionately, yet tenderly. Nathan held her face in his hands the way he always did, nipping at her lips, loving them with his tongue, making their connection all the more romantic.

"Make love to me," Haley rasped breathlessly against his mouth.

She pulled him into another hot kiss, seeking out his tongue with hers and seductively sucking it into her mouth, adding just enough pressure to send blood boiling to both of their loins. Nathan moaned at the contact, dipping down to pull her even tighter against him. "Make love to me," his wife repeated as she gazed up at him with big soulful brown eyes. Her full pouty lips were flush pink with his kisses and her breathing was coming out in short gasps.

In the background, a familiar tune began to play softly on the stereo.

_Anytime you feel like you just can't hold on  
Just hold on to my love and I'll help you be strong_

_But you're so afraid to lose, and baby I can't reach your heart  
I can't face this world that's keeping us apart  
_

Without another word, he swept her up into his arms and carried her to the front of the fireplace. There he set her down on the plush white lamb's wool carpet, covering her body with his. Their lips met and Nathan kissed her sweetly, tenderly, showing her second by second how much he loved her. They lost themselves in their kisses, the love they felt for one another surrounding them like a blanket. Their clothes were off but neither really knew how or when. Nathan gazed down at his wife's nude body, his eyes awash with love and desire. Haley simply gazed up at him, suddenly shy and uncomfortable under his gaze, but knowing he was honest about still wanting her.

_When I can be the one to show you  
Everything you missed before  
Just hold on now, cause I could be the one to give you more  
Let you know_

Nathan's hand slowly went down her body, caressing her neck, shoulders, and breasts. He stopped when he reached her flat stomach, that now held the scar that proved his daughter existed, to place several tender, warm kisses there. He sucked softly on her belly button, causing her to let out a soft moan. Haley let out a sharp cry of pleasure as Nathan's head continued lower and finally made its' way between her thighs.

Every thought left her head. Her mind was stunningly clear as Nathan's mouth made love to her femininity. Her hands dove into his hair; she lifted herself up, her moans of desire growing louder and louder by the moment. Her head fell back; she felt dizzy and needed to close her eyes because the room was spinning about her and she felt as if she were floating. All she felt was Nathan's mouth and the incredible things it was doing to her. She sensed herself going higher and higher, climbing farther still, into the great abyss. Nathan was sending her soaring; one flick of his tongue, the corkscrew digit of a finger, and he sent his wife into orgasmic overload. Her toes curled, her back arched, her breasts quivered and she let out a soft moan of desire as she collapsed onto the carpet, her dark-colored hair floating about behind her. All thoughts of doubt and self consciousness were millions of miles from her brain. All she felt was immense pleasure, a glow of warmth that surrounded her body.

_Anytime you need love baby I'm on your side (hey)  
Just let me be the one I can make it alright (I can make it alright)  
Anytime you need love baby you're in my heart  
I can make it alright_

Her chest was heaving, her eyelids heavy, as she looked down at her husband just as he peeked his sexy baby blues up at her. He was grinning. The look of pure joy on face was contagious and soon she was grinning too. She reached for him, pulling him up until they were face to face. Nathan felt her heart beat pounding furiously against his. Her forehead was shiny with a fresh sheen of sweet, her eyelashes spiky from the tears she had shed, her cheeks rosy. She looked like a woman who had just been made love to. Her eyes were wild with sensuality and full of love for him. Nathan cradled her precious face in his hands even as he fit their bodies perfectly together. For the first time in months, Haley was reminded of just how much he really loved her when she felt his hard, full shaft probing at the entrance to her womb. Haley wrapped her legs around his waist, clutching his forearms as she gazed purposely in his face. "Love me," she rasped before drawing his soft lips into a kiss. As the kiss deepened and his tongue slid its way into her mouth, Haley felt him sink into her completely, her velvety smooth canal sheathing his turgid length like a glove.

_I look into your eyes, and I feel it coming through  
And I can't help but want you more than I want to  
So baby take all of your fears, and cast them all on me  
'Cause all I ever wanted was just to make you see_

Nathan moaned, blinking, his eyes becoming wide with pleasure. He panted, fighting for air as he got used to her warmth. She wrapped her arms around his head now, pulling it down to hers. She wanted to feel every single inch of his body on hers. She rubbed herself against him, wiggling her hips, tightening their hold on one another. Nathan groaned again, burying his face in her sweet smelling neck.

God, how he loved her.

He felt nothing else but the pleasure of loving her, the joy that her loving brought him and the satisfaction of sharing it together. Nathan moved his hands along her smooth, satiny arms until he found her hands and he laced their fingers together. He slowly pivoted his pelvis down, sinking himself as deeply into her as he could. He stared into her face, his eyes locking with hers, never wavering. She met his downward thrust with an upward thrust of her own. The pleasure of the contact sent intense waves of passion through both of their loins. Their mouths fused in a hungry kiss as their lower halves fused in a sexy dance of rhythmic pleasure. Nathan untwined one of his hands from hers to frame her face. She whimpered at the tenderness of his touch and leaned into his hand even as his hips worked over time pumping into hers. "I love you," Nathan rasped breathlessly against her mouth.

_That I could be the one to give you  
All that you've been searching for  
Just hold on to my love, and baby let me give you more  
You know, anytime_

Suddenly, he pulled back, nearly sliding himself completely out of her. Then, without warning, he returned, slicing into her, causing her to cry out in surprised, pleasurable delight. She cried out his name, pulled his head down to hers and kissed him passionately, trying so desperately to hold on even as his powerful hips swirled her into madness over and over again. Tears were rolling down her cheeks as her orgasm hit her, so powerful she felt herself close to blacking out. Her entire body tingled, her nipples hardened to near spikes and warmth settled over her, leaving her glowing.

_Anytime you need love baby I'm on your side (I'm on your side)  
Just let me be the one I can make it alright (I can make it alright)  
Anytime you need love baby you're in my heart  
I can make it alright_

Nathan felt her body tightening on his like a vise and he fought valiantly to push through it. He wasn't ready to give in yet; he wasn't ready to end the sexual rapture that they were both experiencing. He felt her go weak beneath him and knew that she had just had a monumental orgasm, she was making the little sounds in her throat that she did when she had just been sexually drained. But soon she was back at it with him, moving her hips in tune to his, grinding them, rolling, and then stopping as he did to slow it back up. She bit her lip intently as she stared into his eyes, determined to bring him off as powerfully as he had her. She was bucking her hips up at him and it was weakening his resolve. He felt the familiar burn in his balls and sped up, squeezing his wife's hand firmly as he pumped several more times before letting out a low groan and unleashing himself within her. He slumped tiredly on her breast, his hair damp with sweat, his breathing harsh and loud. She felt his heart pounding in his chest and reached down to stroke his hair. She knew he needed a few moments to recover - shit, they both did after that.

_And now there's no way out  
And I can't help the way I feel  
'Cause baby you're the fire and I'll be waiting right here  
You know my love is real, baby  
Yeah yeah yeah_

And as Haley gazed down at her husband sated form, she felt a smile creep to her lips that was soon accompanied by more tears. Nathan heard her sniffle before he felt the tear drop and he lifted his head up to look at her. When he saw the tears falling down her cheeks, his face fell and his heart shattered into a million pieces. He knew he shouldn't have been so rough with her, but she had felt so good.

When Haley saw his face, she shook her head, reaching for him.

"No, no, no." Her voice was hoarse from all the shouting she had done. She took his chin in her hands and forced him to look at her. His eyes were bright with tears. "I love you," Haley whispered, her voice breaking. "Thank you so much for making that so perfect for me." She crawled into his lap, wrapping both her arms and legs around him. "I promise, I'm wonderful... everything about that was wonderful"

Nathan kissed her nose, smiling. "It was pretty great, wasn't it?" His hand was stroking her bare back and the ends of her hair.

"Everything's always great with you," Haley whispered as she buried her face in his neck.

_Anytime you need love baby I'm on your side, you know  
Just let me be the one I can make it alright (I can make it all, make it all, make it alright)  
Anytime you need love baby you're in my heart  
I can make it alright, yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah_

_Silence_

Nothing was heard but the crackling of their synthetic fire as they lay with one another after their lovemaking. Nathan had got a pillow from their bed, and used it, while Haley was lazily draped over him, her head on his chest, one leg over his, and her hand mindlessly intertwined with his as it rested on his stomach.

"I'm sorry for making you feel like I didn't want you. It wasn't like that Haley. It's never been like that, and it never will be." He said confidently

"I was just being stupid and insecure Nathan. I should know better by now, especially with you. I know you love me"

Letting out a long sigh, Nathan pushed for her to sit up, and resituated them so that her head lay next to his on the one pillow and they were only inches away from each other.

"It's more than that Hales. Yes, i love you with everything in me, but... you complete me in every way imaginable. We are so connected that it wasn't just one of us that was miserable, we both were. I could see you hurting just like you could see me hurting." He kissed her softly more than once before pulling back. "More communication is all it takes. I want to be able to just talk to you again. I really miss that"

She leaned forward and kissed his lips, silently agreeing. She couldn't figure out how she'd gone that long without being so intimate and passionate with her husband.

"I missed you a lot. I missed this, I missed everything. Just touching you, and kissing you for no reason. I felt like I was dying inside just not being this way with you. I _always_ want to be this way with you."

She thought back for a second on when they first started seriously dating and she was able to see him often. She had to explain to him how she'd never been in a real relationship to where she was comfortable with PDA.

"_Haley, don't be shy with me. Seriously, I won't ever do something that makes you uncomfortable but if I feel the need to kiss you or just hold you, then that's what I'm gonna do. So whenever you feel the need to throw me against the wall and make out, by all means go for it" he said smirking at the last part. She walked further away from him shaking her head in embarrassment. The next day when he saw her, she was completely different with him. Open, affectionate, and clingy in a good way. She'd finally opened up to him and was able to be with him in ways she'd always wanted to be._

He leaned down and kissed her, matching the passion in her words.

If only it wasn't so late.

"So did I. Get some sleep woman, cause before Maddie gets up, I plan to give you an encore of tonight's events" he said against her lips, feeling them stretch out into a smile.

"I love you" she whispered.

"I love you too"

_Kiss._

* * *

Nathan was up first the next morning burping Madeline while he watched Sports Center. He had stayed true to his word last night, and only fifteen short minutes later, had their first encore began. The encores continued through the night, and he knew that his wife was too worn out to get up with their daughter the next morning.

Once he heard the small belch, he lifted the infant on his knees and just looked her.

She was gorgeous.

Her hair was so dark and curly, now coming just to her neck. Eyes still wide like her mothers' but matched his coloring, the cutest lips and ears. They had definitely spawned a beauty. But for him, the icing on the cake was her inheritance of his wife's' high, perfect cheeks bones. Her smile was his favorite and would get her out of a lot of trouble once she got older.

He put his feet up on the table in front of him, and cocooned her in his legs. He took the blanket he had out there for her and held it up in front of his face, blocking her view of him.

Her face was full of confusion when she could no longer see her daddy. Continuing to look at the blanket for a minute longer, her lower lip started to quiver while tears filled her pretty eyes.

"Don't cry Bear, I'm just playing with you. I didn't go anywhere see?"

He continued the game for a few more minutes trying to get her to grasp that he wasn't really gone, and would always come back. It wasn't until she started to full on cry that he stopped.

"What's wrong" Haley asked coming into the living room, still sporting her pajamas. "Is she being whinny?"

She plopped down on the couch next to Nathan and leaned her head on his shoulder, staring at Madeline's disgruntled looking face.

"She's fine, she just didn't like peek-a-boo that much. When I kept putting the blanket up, to her, I'm gone, and I guess she didn't like her daddy being gone all of a sudden, cause she kept crying until she saw me again."

"Well then she is her momma's girl... I don't like when you're gone either." her voice came out as a soft whisper as she kept her eyes on their daugher.

He looked down at her, still resting her head on his shoulder, and greeted her properly with a soft, passionate kiss. He finished off, kissing the tip of her nose before staring at her. Her hair had been thrown in a messy bun. Her tank top showed off the marks he'd left on her soft skin just the night before, and she was sporting a pair of his boxers. He wanted to take her right at that very moment.

"How did you sleep?"

"Perfect, everything about last night was perfect... and this morning" she said blushing. She slid Madeline from his legs to her lap, and cuddled with the baby.

Her cheeks stayed flushed for a while, her mind working overtime. On one side, she was thinking of how perfect last night was, and on the other about what tonight would lead to. She smirked at that. If she were honest with herself, she'd climb back in bed, knowing that her lower half was _satisfyingly sore_; something she'd honestly missed. Her husband wearing her out was one of her favorite pastimes, and he always left her sated.

She couldn't wait to return the favor... but until then, she wanted to go out.

"Let's go out somewhere" she said focusing her attention back on him.

"I guess last night wasn't as good as I thought" he said smirking.

That earned him a smack in the arm.

"I'm serious. I want to go do something today with the kids, maybe even with Brooke, Luke and Drew. We've all been so distant lately, and that should change."

She was right, with them being so distant, it slowly started to distance them from their family. Brooke always said, "if Naley ain't happy, then ain't nobody happy" And it was true. It had been torture seeing the couple so distant and their two best friends weren't about choosing sides; therefore, they stayed away. Luke was practically the male version of Haley and they were so close. In the same way, Nathan and was the big brother that Brooke never had, and they always had each other's' back.

"How about we all go out for some breakfast, then we can go to the new Putt-Putt Arcade place that's in the Plaza Center at the mall.. The kids will love it, and it's not too much walking around for Jay. Speaking of, we have to get him walking on those crutches soon."

Nathan knew his son was growing, and he couldn't carry him around everywhere for the next month or so. Listening to his wife agree, Nathan conjured up another thought.

"And, I bet if we ask them really nicely, we can convince them to take the kids for the night" Inching towards her, he kissed her right under her chin.

"That does sound nice... and if you're good..." she sucked in a breath, feeling his tongue following his lips. "_If_ you're good...you might get your own personal champagne room" She looked up at him through batted eye lashes that drove him wild.

She was too sexy for her own good, and she knew it. Her big doe eyes and long eye lashes were usually soft, and sweet, but when they were presented to him, all he saw was lust and sexiness. With one bat of those eye lashes, and her side smirk that she had invented long before his ever came into play and Nathan Scott was mush... hot mush.

She looked at him and could see the wheels turning in his head, and knew if she didn't stop him, they wouldn't get very far today. "Alright then, I'll call Brooke, and set it up, then get Jay ready in his bathroom, and you take ours to get Toots ready"

She was up and out of sight before he could object. He looked down at his daughter that was now returned to his lap and slobbering everywhere while chewing on her tiny fist. "Now listen up Bear, daddy's gonna give you a bath, and you're gonna cooperate this time okay? Let's make Daddy look good for Mommy today okay?"

She stared at him for a minute before pursing her lips out, then leaned forward and gnawed on his nose. "Thank you baby, daddy loves your kisses"

* * *

Nearly two hours later, Lucas and Nathan Scott parked next to each other in the semi-crowded parking lot and the two females started unloading the kids. Nathan walked alongside Jay, while the small boy got used to using his crutches, and they all made their way into the Arcade entrance. After picking out a table, Brooke and Haley, who had Madeline strapped to her chest in a carrier, went to get two pictures of drinks while the men took the boys and bought tokens.

They were all thinking back to the days before they had kids and would end up at some putt-putt place and double date. Once they came up with a plan, they all ended up watching the two older Scott men competing in a heated game of basketball; seeing who could make the most baskets. Both brothers were extremely talented when it came to basketball, but one was usually boisterous, and full of himself.

As soon as Nathan saw a few people start to crowd them, he began to talk his usual smack, and gloat to the crowd. Now what everyone else saw was different; Lucas's score quickly exceeded his brothers and soon enough the buzzer went off and Nathan squinted at the scoreboard in disbelief. Knowing it was just a game, Nathan started over to shake Lucas's hand, until his heard his son.

"Your daddy cheated!" he said, directing his anger towards his cousin.

"Did not! Your daddy lost!" Drew yelled back with just as much force, his temper stemming from his mother.

"Nu-Uh! My daddy always wins!" Cast-legged and all, Jay tried to make a dash for his 3 month-older cousin before he was captured by his father.

Both women eyed their husbands, silently telling them that this was their fault. They always fought about basketball whenever they played each other, knowing that they were both equally good; now their children were inheriting their bad habits.

"Hey," Nathan started staring at Jamie, who was fuming in his arms. "You need to calm down, you hear me? Hey!" He said turning his sons face to look at him. "Look at me. Your Uncle Lucas did _not_ cheat okay? He won and I lost."

He watched as his brow furrowed in confusion. "But daddy, you _always _win" he said eying him intently.

"Not _always_" the small blonde haired boy threw out.

"Hey! That's enough from you as well" Lucas said sternly to his stubborn son. They all knew he was a smart ass, picking up on everything his mother said. It was something they'd been dealing with for a while.

"Buddy, I don't always win, Lucas wins sometimes too. He won this time, and that's okay."

Every time Lucas and Nathan played against each other, it always came to a tie. Growing up playing basketball together, they each knew the others moves and feel of the ball. There was usually no way one could beat the other. Of course their sons would demand to know who won, and they would each take a turn and switch off saying the winner was whoever lost last time.

"Did you almost win?" he asked sporting a huge pout.

"Jay, your daddy was really close to winning" Lucas said stepping closer to his nephew.

"I knew it!" he said smiling at Nathan, and then giving him a hug. His daddy was his hero, and there was no hiding that.

"Well, you two can't be fighting over something like a game okay? Sometimes people loose and sometimes people win, but all that matters is that you try your best. So no more fighting okay?" He watched as they nodded their heads, then turned to the women and smirked; they had already solved the problem themselves.

Snapping the carrier from her chest, Haley handed Madeline over to Nathan. "You take her, we're about to play some DDR." It was a ritual for her and Brooke to play the game every since they were in college and they loved it

On their very first double date, the guys challenged the girls in DDR, not knowing of the girls' obsession with it. The boys decided to set the level on Easy, and were shocked when the girls made it through without a miss. The next round the girls turned it up to medium, knowing the boys couldn't keep up at all. They stumbled about the huge platform, missing most of their hits, and failing miserably, while the girls once again did a perfect routine.

After putting the tokens in the machine, Haley and Brooke did two rounds of _easy_ before they switched games. They played around for another hour or so, allowing the boys to ride the small rides and play basketball themselves, before Nathan, Maddie, and Lucas went into the mall area in search of a good snack. Every time they went to this particular Mall, they would get Churros for a snack. Both the adults and kids loved the fried cinnamon treat and the only downside, was that the stand was located on the opposite side of the mall.

"Hey man, where're you going? The stands over here." Lucas said pointing in the opposite direction that Nathan was walking.

"I know, but they're gonna want them all warm by the time we get back, and I wanna check out this shoe store before we leave."

Agreeing with his younger brother, Lucas followed him into the shoe store and immediately went in search of shoes.

"Aww, what a little cutie you have here" Nathan looked up at the young girl wearing a Foot Locker striped employee shirt, and raised his eyebrows in surprise. She was closer than he thought, and was holding Madeline's small hand that hung out of the carrier.

"A little close aren't you?" Nathan said looking to Lucas for help, who was obviously finding this amusing while still checking out shoes. Trying to be discreet, he took a hold of both his daughters' hands, and started to back up.

"What's her name?" her voice was sour and Nathan grimaced at the baby talk she'd started. "Better yet, what's her big brothers' name?" he looked at her in surprise at she batted her eye lashes at him.

"Well her name is Madeline, and ..."

"That's adorable! She must love her big brother, she's such a good baby"

Nathan looked on, wondering how she would know anything about Madeline, and how she had major balls to come on to a complete stranger. He looked down at his hand, and could clearly see his wedding band sitting there, then back up at her.

"Yea, okay so this is not my sister, she's my daughter, and I am happily married" he said hoping she didn't interrupt him again.

Before she could say anything, Lucas walked over to Nathan. As soon as she saw Lucas, Madeline let out a squeal along with a huge grin. "Hey Mads! Nate, you ready, I didn't see anything"

"Great, you're gay! Why are all the hot guys gay? And married at that? Ugh!" she rolled her eyes at them both and stomped off, clearly not interested anymore.

"Thanks a lot Luke, now everyone in here thinks I'm married to you" walking out of the store, Nathan headed to the snack stand with Lucas following close behind him.

"Yea well you'd be lucky to be married to me. I also just saved you both an ass-kicking from Haley, so you owe me"

* * *

With the two youngsters next to them playing _Wack-a-Mole_, Haley and Brooke started up another game of DDR. They both finished the first round only missing a few bonuses, but on the second round, Haley looked on in shock, as Brooke score slowly started to diminish, and her sister gave up and stepped off the platform.

"What's wrong? Why'd you stop?" Brooke was always little better than Haley, and never gave up on a battle, and although Haley was somewhat tired herself, she had her husband to blame for that.

"I'm too tired." She complained.

"Whatever Brooke, I'm not that tired, and I have _two_ kids!"

"Yea, yea so tell me about last night!" she said as the two of them brought the boys back to the table and got some drinks.

"What do you mean" even though she played dumb, she knew Brooke had seen the difference in her and her husbands behavior.

"Don't you _what_ me! You guys totally had make up sex last night"

"Shush Brooke!" she hissed out looking at the boys who didn't seem to care about what they were talking about. "We talked about everything that has been going on, got things out in the open, and we made up" Spoken all innocently.

"Oh whatever, give me details, and don't try to sugar coat them Hales, this is me you're talking to; I invented at least half the moves you use." She said sassily.

"Well what we did was beyond making love, I mean I don't even know if there are words to describe what I felt last night. It was so... so...mate-full?" she said blushing

Brooke nodded, "Nice, now where exactly did you mate and how many times?" she was always nosy.

Her blush deepened. "Since you _must_ know, it was on the rug you gave us that's in front of our fireplace. It was so perfect... and although I could barely keep track, we went at least six times."

"Whoa, six rounds? I didn't think you had it in you Hales!"

"Hell yea I do! I'm just gonna have to refill my birth control and double up or something, cause we know how much Scott sperm can swim"

"Yea I wish I had done that" she let out a half smile.

"What do you mean Brooke, Drew is like the best thing that ever happened to you and Luke!" she eyed her sister wondering what was going on in her mind. She'd never heard her say Drew was any kind of mistake... unplanned, yea, but a mistake never.

"No Haley, Drew _is_ the best thing that's ever happened to us, I mean..." she looked down at her hands wondering why she hadn't just kept her mouth shut.

Haley looked at her, and started to finally put the pieces together. Quitting DDR, asking Lucas to bring her not one, but _two_ Churros, grimacing at any pork from breakfast that morning, and easily scarfing down two servings off eggs.

"Brooke, honey are you pregnant?" she asked quietly, well aware of the two children that were still there.

"Guilty" she finally looked up; tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

"Hey boys, why don't you come and play this cool race car game" she grabbed a few tokens and put enough in the slot for them to play two rounds, and went back to Brooke, still keeping an eye on the boys.

"Brooke! This is great honey, why are you so upset?

"We _just_ got back Haley! The paints just dry in our house, and we're pregnant already. I mean I just don't know what to do, I'm just about to add another line for _Lady Scott_ and I just don't know how I'll balance it all with Drew and a new baby. I also wanted to be able to keep Toots for you once you started back work full time. And hell just to be a wife to Lucas. First I did want a baby now, and Luke was hesitant, but now we've flip flopped. He's all for it, and I'm the one freaking out."

"Brooke you gotta think about this babe, this is a great thing! The book tour is over, Lucas is writing from home now and Drew's in pre-school three times a week; it's a great time for another baby. Does Lucas know? How far along are you?"

"I'm nine weeks, and Lucas is just a clueless as he was with Drew. I mean the morning sickness isn't that bad, and he did ask a few weeks ago if I was, but at the time I didn't know and said no. I don't know how to tell him Hales; I mean this was not officially planned."

"Planned or unplanned, this is your baby. You know how crazy Lucas is about you and Drew, he'll be thrilled!" she ran her thumbs across her face ridding the tears that had made their way down her face and pulled her in for a hug.

"Thanks Hales... now I just gotta figure out a way to tell Lucas. Can't you just do it?" she said jokingly.

"Sure, no problem!" pulling out her phone, she typed for a few seconds, then put it back in her pocket. "Done!"

"What do you mean done?" she said eyeing Haley.

"I just told Lucas"

"How?"

"The exact same way you told him when you found out about Drew"

Her mouth instantly fell open, "You told him in a text message! Haley! He made me promise to never do that again"

Lucas had been in his graduate psychology class when he'd received a text from Brooke simply saying, "_What should be have for dinner tonight? I'm thinking that chicken and rice stuff Haley always makes. We'll talk about it later babe. I'm pregnant Luke, Love you"_ He had jumped out of his seat, and just stood there staring at his phone, while his classmates looked on. Finally his professor had gotten through to him when he began to pace the front of the room chanting "_she's pregnant"_ repeatedly.

"Well he should be getting it pretty soon" she laughed at her best friend and sent her a bright smile. "I'm so happy for you guys Brooke!"

"I hope I have a little girl" She wrinkled her nose, her smiled equaled Haley's and she pulled her in for a smothering hug. "I'm pregnant Hales!"

Before Haley could respond, they both jumped at the loud voice they heard next.

"BROOKE!"

Turning around, she braced herself as Lucas ran over to her and lifted her into his arms; obviously out of breath. "Are you really? Is it true?" Feeling her nod against him, he pulled back and kissed her hard on the mouth, before deepening the kiss.

Haley looked passed the two, still caught up in each other, and saw Nathan coming towards her nearly out of breath, carrying the Churros and Madeline who looked confused.

"What's wrong, Luke said he got a text from you, then he just took off running, what the hell?" he looked over and saw the make out session his brother and sister in law were having and looked on confused. "You wanna tell me what's going on Hales?"

"Well babe, looks like _we_ might be taking Drew for the night. The have some celebrating to do." She leaned up and kissed him, loving the way things were going in their life.

Her best friends were pregnant again, her marriage was amazing, and she had two healthy children.

_Life couldn't get better...at least until all the kids were tucked in tonight. Haley_ thought, while biting her lower lip. _Yea tonight would still be great._

* * *

**WOW! So this is like the longest chapter I've ever written- 26 pages! I'm glad that I was able to give you a long one. I hope that you guys liked it and will review and tell me what you think... Also, I know where I'm going with this pretty much, but I would love to hear from you guys about what you might want. Like is there any scenes that you might want to see? A peek into Brucas' life? More Naley Loving? Jay and Haley? Grandparents with the grandkids? Let me know what you might want to see happen. I do have one funny chapter that I want to write, because I think it's hilarious, but I still want you guys input! So let me know and please review!**

**I Also want to give a big thank you to a certain person, you know who you are that was a huge help with the love scene. I'm the OTH fan that IS a Haley James from start to finish. Even being in my mid twenties, I'm proud to be a virgin and being able to keep myself for my husband is something I value the most about myself. With that scene and even reading similar scenes in FF's I usually don't. Most of my favorite stories, are rated M, but for those scenes, as great as they may be, I don't read them and can just skim over and get the gist that the deed is done lol But I had help writing this scene, because not having experienced this myself, it's something I'm not going to just write about.. Makes me prude-ish? Don't' believe so, but just being honest. It's something that I want for myself, but I hope that people that do enjoy it, have enjoyed it (sounds weird lol) But this person helped with this scene and yes, I did read it, and put in a few things and overall felt it was beautiful for this married couple to engage in… Hope you guys enjoyed this.**

**Also, this is the last chapter that I have pre-written so I will be updating as I update, I'm sure ill still try to work ahead of pace, but this was the last completed chapter I already had written out. 5 REVIEWS UNLOCKS THE NEXT CHAPTER! Thanks for reading!- Jen**


	21. Chapter 19

**Hi everyone! Sorry this took sooooo long! Been super busy, but am trying to balance writing more and actually feeling like writing more. Have the plot down, just gotta type it up and I refuse to give non-sense chapters so I try to make it as perfect as possible for you guys! Enjoy and review if you can! Big shout out to TheKellay! Such a big help and muse for this story always!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of OTH or it's characters!**

* * *

**Chapter 19:**

It was just after six o'clock that evening when Lucas grabbed a hold of the small suitcase his wife had packed and walked up to his younger brother's house after Brooke and Drew. Making their way into the house, Drew started in on taking his flip flops off then started on his shirt.

"Why are you taking your shirt off baby?" Brooke spoke to her son.

"Cause at Uncle Nathan's house, you don't need a shirt if you're a boy"

Before she could respond, her nephew came tearing through the living room and over to the three of them shirtless. "Hi! Mommy's feeding Maddie from her boobies" he said snickering with his small hands covering his lips.

"Jay, quit that. That's your last warning before you're in trouble" Nathan walked over to his son with a reprimanding look on his face and sternness in his voice. He thought it was damn hilarious that his mother fed his sister from her breast and loved saying the word "boobies" anytime he could.

Shaking his head back and forth speedily, he looked to his dad with pleading eyes. "I won't, I won't!" he promised.

Choosing to ignore Jay's need for approval, Nathan turned to his brother and smiled "Thanks again for this guys. You sure you can stay the night right?" he lowered his voice while asking.

"Yea" Brooke spoke up. She'd taken their bag to the guest room before walking back towards the men. "But Hales never said anything about you guys staying out all night."

"I hope you didn't mention anything to her Brooke. It's a surprise" he turned his attention to the hall, making sure his wife hadn't come out, then continued with a lower voice. "I'm okay with being away from Bear for the night, I mean, yea this time it's willingly, but Hales has never been away from Maddie for more than a few hours, so I'm kinda gonna spring it on her and hope she doesn't kill me."

"Ha!" Brooke slapped his arm, shaking her head. "Hope she doesn't castrate you. You know she's gonna flip out on you, but it'll be good for you two. Plus Scottie will be here in her own home with us, that's a plus you can feed Hales."

"Brooke, she's not a dog, stop calling her Scottie, we hate that name" in his scowl concealed a hint of a smile. He didn't like the name, but the way it flustered his wife did make him laugh. Brooke never had great nicknames for his children. She'd called Jay _Pooty-Tooty_ for the longest time, making both Nathan and Haley nauseous every time she exclaimed the name in a high pitch voice.

Before she could defend herself, the three adults turned at the sound of Haley's high heels moving through the hallway and towards the living room. "Alright, this chubby bunny is all fed and ready to play with her Auntie Brooke and her favorite Uncle Lucas." Not wanting to get make up on her sensitive skin, she kissed the top of her head before handing her to Nathan to say goodbye. Looking up, she froze seeing their faces.

"Hales, you look smoking' hot! Damn! Where did you get that dress? And we definitely know someone's getting laid tonight" Brooke was blatant in her response, immediately causing Haley to blush and roll her eyes.

"Nice one babe. Haley you look beautiful. You guys get out of here, and have fun tonight" Lucas moved towards his brother and eased the baby from his hands, turning her around in his arms so she could see her parents. "Say bye-bye to mommy and daddy" Picking her small wrist up, he had her waving at them, while she cooed and smiled.

Brooke was the first to realize that Nathan hadn't taken his eyes off his wife since she entered the room, and took a hold of Lucas' hand, pulling him away from the couple.

"Hold on" Nathan snapped out of his trance, before moving to Madeline and giving her noisy kisses on both her cheeks. "Bye you. Papa Bear loves his little Bear. You be a good girl" he kissed her one last time before turning back to Haley.

He eyes immediately darkened as they trailed over his wives body. Her midnight blue dress hugged her curvy body like a glove. The satin material made a bow like shape at her chest, with the sides scrunched together, leaving the middle front and back smooth with smaller ridges. It came a few inches above her knees. Nathan had the perfect view of her toned legs, making them seemingly longer with the silver strappy heels she wore. The dress had a perfect square neckline that accentuated her cleavage, making Nathan want to skip directly to last part of his planned evening.

Gathering her up in his arms, Nathan held Haley against him tightly lifting her just inches off the ground. He smirked when she let out a yelp. "You look extremely hot babe. I mean beautiful, sexy, gorgeous, seductive, everything. You sure you don't want to just skip to the end of the night festivities Hales"

"Not a chance! You are taking me out Nathan Scott. I want to go out on an actual date with my very handsome, extremely sexy tanned husband" she brushed her lips against his but before she could deepen the kiss, she and Nathan heard giggles coming from behind them.

"Hey you trouble makers, get over here!" Lucas growled out behind the two boys that played behind the sofa watching the adults. "You two should probably get out of here" he winked at Haley before dragging the two boys back down the hall.

Sitting her back down on her feet, Nathan handed her the small silver clutch, before grabbing her free hand. "Let's get out of here woman"

When Nathan's Range Rover neared the west end of downtown San Antonio, he glanced over at Haley. "Take a look in the glove box," he waited until she pulled the striped receiving blanket out. "Cover your eyes with it" The look he received easily told him she needed more convincing than that. "Come on Hales, just do it please. Humor me. Make yourself a blindfold woman. That's the best I could do, it's not like we have scarf just lying around the house. Just trust me okay? Chop chop"

She rolled her eyes at his demand, but obliged and loosely tied the blanket around her head. She wore it for only ten more minutes when the car slowed to a stop and the engine stopped. "Can I take this off now? I'd hate to walk into wherever we are with Toots' baby blanket on my face" she said with a chuckle.

"Yea you can" she shimmied in her seat a little as she undid the knot and he went around to open her door as her mouth hung open in shock.

"Baby, this is Aldo's!"

"Yea Hales, I know" he stared at her, wondering if she thought he'd actually forgot about the place.

"We've never had dinner here before"

"I know, that's exactly why we're here now. Hales, stop. I know what this place is. I could never forget that night. It was by far the worst date I've ever taken you on, but it was also one of the best nights I've had with you"

* * *

_Haley sipped from a glass of ice cold water while she paced the small kitchen in her apartment. The perspiration from the glass had her once again nervously wiping the access water on a small hand towel before glancing out the blinds again. She started back towards her bedroom when there was a knock on her front door that caused her to stop abruptly._

_She wasn't expecting anyone besides Nathan, and had told him to simply honk the horn when he arrived so she could come down. She looked through the peep hole and grinned when she saw her guy standing there._

_Opening the door, she took a step back before launching herself in his arms and squeezing his neck tightly. _

"_Hi Hales" he whispered against her lips when she pulled back to look at him. He kissed her on the mouth hard at first until they both needed air, then swooped right back in with gentle kisses. He hadn't seen her in over a month and he was so happy to officially be stationed back in the US, and more importantly not in Active Duty. He was home and ready to start his life with Haley._

"_I've missed you so much woman" he touched his thumb to her bottom lip and squeezed her hip. She simply nodded, unable to speak as her eyes filled with tears._

"_I'm just glad you're here. Like really here to stay"_

_"Stay forever huh woman?" he asked her as he took a step further into the apartment, moving her along with him._

"_As long as I'll put up with you I guess" She shoved him away before turning to grab her purse and cover up._

"_Well, I was kind of hoping to do this later, but uh," his voice had gotten somewhat shaky and when Haley turned around she saw him staring down at a black velvet box in his right hand. Opening the box, he took a step close to where she was holding on to the kitchen counter, and took her hand. "I uh, I need to know you'll let me stay forever Hales. No matter where you are, I want to be there, always. I want to marry you, I want to make love to you and make babies with you Haley. I want to watch you become the most amazing doctor, and buy a house with you. I want to apologize to you while you're in labor cause I know Scott boys are big babies and I plan on having many of those with you"_

_Getting down on one knee, he smiled at her as tears slowly started to slip from her eyes. _

"_I've been all over the world Haley, over fifteen different countries, two continents, and too many states to count, and the only place I've ever __**wanted**__ to be was exactly by your side. You're my life now Haley, the person I love and treasure the most, and I want to start our lives together, on this night the right way." Her knees weren't strong enough to keep her up, and she knelt down in front of him, making him rest on both knees as well. _

"_Marry Me Haley James, and keep me around forever."_

_Haley couldn't stop the constant flow of tears that flooded from her eyes when she nodded her head unable to speak. She leaned forward pressing her lips against his before deepening the kiss. When the need for air was needed, he was the one to pull away and enveloped her body into his. "yes" she whispered against his neck. Kissing his skin, she pulled back and grabbed one of his hands and brought it to her lips kissing his palm "I love you Nathan, and I want to marry you more than anything"_

_It was only twenty-five minutes later when Nathan parked Haley's car into a parking spot in the lot of Aldo's Ristorante Italiano. Haley waited for Nathan to open her door before the two made their way to the front entrance of the fancy restaurant. _

"_Ooh, I hope we can sit out on the Veranda, it's so nice out tonight" she smiled at him when he looped his arm through hers._

"_Hello, welcome to Aldo's on this beautiful evening, can I have your reservation name" The tall, thin man that greeted them carried two menus against his arm and had an accent as though he were directly from Italy. His pin straight black hair, caused Haley's smile spread even more at the experience so far. She really felt as though she was in Italy and she'd barely gotten pass the host. _

_Nathan however glanced nervously at the man, mouth slightly agape hoping that he'd catch his drift, but when he simply looked from him to Haley, he knew he'd have to speak up._

"_I uh, Hales I didn't know I had to make a reservation, I saw it online and thought it looked nice" he looked to the man that wore a blank expression, clearly not getting the picture._

"_Sir, I actually don't have a reservation, I didn't know I was supposed to call ahead. Do you have anything available? It's just the two of us."_

"_No reservation, no service" immediately turning away, he placed the menus down and ignored them._

"_But sir could you make one exception?" Haley placed her hand on his arm, remembering Nathan always telling her that she had guys falling over themselves for her, and tried to work said magic on him. Batting her eyes, she spoke softly, "he's just coming home from being on active duty, and surprised me with this" she lifted her left hand smiling brightly. She'd need some time to get used to that being there. "He just proposed to me and with that on his mind he simply forgot to make reservations, just this one time please?"_

"_No!" the accent they heard was definitely fake and his over dramatics would have been comical if he'd just bent the rules and allowed them in._

_Haley grabbed a hold on Nathan's hand, pulling him out the front door and back out to the car. _

"_Hales, I'm so sorry. I swear I wanted this night to be perfect, I should've checked. I'm so stupid, dammit!" _

"_Hey, quit that! You're not stupid, it's fine. We can just go someplace else"_

"_Hales, I want to take you someplace nice. You've seen the strip, all the nice places have full lots, there's no way in hell we're gonna get into anywhere. This night was supposed to be perfect"_

_Seeing the defeated look on his face and in his posture, Haley lead him to the passenger's side of the car and forced him in. "Okay" she said getting in to the drives seat. "I'm I charge now. I will take us where I want to go and you get to wear the blindfold this time mister. The ball's in my field now"_

"_Court Hales, it's the ball's in my court now" he chuckled when she elbowed him before backing out of the parking lot and driving away._

_Two hours later Nathan helped Haley out of her cover up and hung it across the stool that sat against the high counter._

"_Come on and say it, my idea was great." She gloated._

"_It's not where I expected to be on our engagement night, that's for sure. I just really wanted to do something special with you Haley"_

"_Hey, it was special to me. You just asked me to spend forever with you. Me and you every day and I said yes. Then I got to kick your ass in bowling and eat hot wings and drink beer. If you're gonna mope around all night, then I might have to make you sleep on the couch"_

"_But I always slee.." he trailed off catching the look she was giving him. "Are you sure?"_

"_I want to be close to you Nathan" _

_It was no secret to any of their friends that Haley wanted to wait until she was married to be intimate with a guy and she even went as far as not sharing any beds with Nathan. Sure they'd taken an afternoon nap together, cuddled before bed, but they hadn't spent an entire night sleeping in the same bed together. Even if Haley fell asleep with Nathan next to her, he'd make sure to retreat to his spot on her couch, always respecting her wishes no matter how hard it was. Before love even, he had the upmost respect for his girl and always would._

"_Stay with me tonight"_

* * *

Haley grabbed a hold of Nathan's arm as they walked towards the hostess.

"Reservation for Scott please" Nathan winked at Haley, before looking back at the woman in front of them.

"Right this way Mr. Scott. I'm happy to inform you of our new "Seafood Italiano" Friday evening spread. Our entire menu consists of fresh seafood for your enjoyment."

"The entire menu tonight? Seafood?" Haley's immediately envisioned her throat closing, tongue swelling, and herself passing out on the ground while going into anaphylactic shock. She'd experienced it once in her life, the day she learned of the allergy, and never wanted to experience it again.

The lady smiled brightly, not reading the near devastated look across Haley's face, "The entire menu" she gleefully exclaimed before bringing her fingers to her lips and kissing them with a "mwah!" following.

"Haley… baby I had no clue they had this going on." He ran his hands through his hair and sighed in frustration. "I can't win with this place can I? Sorry ma'am we'll be canceling our reservation, my wife's allergic to seafood." He took Haley's hand, not wanting to hear the lady's' lame apology and booked it out to the car.

When they were both seated, he could feel Haley's eyes on him. He didn't want to ruin the plans they had for the night, and didn't want to leave it to her to comfort him and make the night right. He was taking his wife out and he would make sure they had a damn good time.

"Screw that seafood infested place Hales, I'm glad we have a good excuse to go to our favorite bowling alley. You up for some beer, and wings?" The smirk was not only on his face, but hers as well as she eyed him.

"You bet your ass I am Scott"

Yes, they were overdressed walking into the crowded, nearly worn down Bowling Alley, but they could smell the fun as soon as they walked in. It took a good fifteen minutes of hugging, kissing, and passing naughty words to the others ears before they were assigned a lane and got their shoes.

"Okay, I'll go get the drinks and wings, and you my went-to-college-for-too-many-years-to-keep-up-with-big-brained wife go get that stupid computer name thing working."

"My big brain helps save infants every day" she shoved him away from her with one hand before walking away, knowing and liking the fact that he was certainly watching her.

When Nathan returned Haley had her shoes on and was bending over the computer typing in Nathan's name to start. He sat in the behind her captivated by the view he had. He'd never deny the feeling his wife could bring out of him without even trying and the view she was giving him now was spectacular.

Standing up, he moved himself behind her, feeling her slightly tense before realizing it was him, and moved his hands to her hips before kissing her neck. "I think you should let me change that name you're putting in"

Turning her body around, she was still leaned back in a somewhat uncomfortable position, but stared at Nathan with a sly look on her face.

"Oh yea? What should I change it to?"

"A-S-S. Serious A-S-S because you Haley James, now Scott have the most serious ass I've ever seen. It's perfect and it's such a tease to be around you and spot that A-S-S because it makes me want to just have you completely."

"There's kids here you know" the random voice reprimanding the couple made Haley push Nathan further away from him, and turn completely away from him. It took longer than expected to get her temperature back to normal and to rid the flush her cheeks carried.

Nathan had been up by only six points when Haley came over with both hands full of four beaker shots filled with different flavors of the sweet drink they were serving tonight. "Thank you for being designated driver tonight babe" she smiled downing two at a time. "Damn, that's yummy. It's seriously like juice Nathan! I could drink like twenty of these things" she moved to head back to the bar area before Nathan grabbed a hold of her waist stopping her.

"Not gonna happen woman. I think it's safe to say you've had enough of those and it's time to go." Grabbing her around the waist, he sat her down and changed out their shoes before leaving.

"Take me home Scott. I need to kiss my babies, and then take you to our bedroom and do some stuff to you with our door closed"

She definitely had a good buzz going, and he hoped that she wouldn't flip out at his news. "So Hales, I wanted to surprise you, and I got us a room for tonight at the Valencia Riverwalk. I know you.."

"We're not going home?" The thought quickly sobered her up and she looked at him with wide, glassy eyes. "But, what.. what about Toots? Nathan, you can't just do that! I've never been away from her for the night."

Her look was wide-eyed and almost disappointment, and he deposited their shoes on the counter before heading out to their car.

"Haley, we both know that we needed this night out. We've had a great night so far and I just wanted to keep that up, and do something special for you. I know you'll miss Toots, but she's fine with Brooke and Lucas, and we'll go home as soon as you want to in the morning. I just wanted some time alone with you. We deserve that"

She had put on her seatbelt and stared straight ahead while he talked and once he was done, she just slowly nodded her head before reaching over and grabbing his hand.

"While you were gone, they were just all I had, and even Jay, I wouldn't let him go to Tonya's or even with Brooke and Lucas for more than a night or two; and that was pushing it. Yea I'm back at work and she's with Brooke a lot of the time, but I'm not used to her not seeing us first thing in the morning. But this is good, I can do this."

Finally making eye contact with him, she smiled brightly "Let's run past the store first"

"What for" he made his way out of the parking lot, and glanced at her before focusing back on the road.

"Because I don't have any toothpaste, and there's no way in hell I'm using the kinda they'll give us at the hotel. And speed it up Scott, I'm ready to be out of this dress" She whispered the last part in his ear, forgetting about not seeing her baby tonight and allowing her buzz to resurface like before.

"Yes Ma'ma"

* * *

Two weeks later if you walked into the house of Haley and Nathan Scott, you smiled at the _Cars_ themed party decorations that covered both the inside and outside. Six tables were set up outside decorated with table cloths red, black and yellow, with some type of center piece that went along with the movie the youngest male Scott obsessed over.

Nathan and Lucas were out early that morning just as the sun was coming up cutting the grass and making sure the backyard was free of any type of bugs nest before the sun became too much. They had a water slide to set up for the kids later, and once they had a few other water games, they'd come inside for the rest of the party. Haley, at first didn't want a bunch of kids running around her house, but figured if they stayed outside at least throughout the water games and eating, they could finish with cake outside, then open presents inside.

Maddie's early rising woke her dad from his slumber, and once Nathan cleaned her up, he handed her over to his half sleep wife, knowing she'd want to nurse and cuddle with her first thing this morning before things got hectic.

Drying off after his shower, Nathan threw on some boxers, basketball shorts and a t-shirt before heading into the kitchen. He smiled when he saw Haley facing him with Maddie obviously in the high chair eating. Moving to the back of the high chair, he peeked on each side, letting out tiny growls, making sure to move back before the baby turned to find him. Her chubby cheese lit up hearing her favorite noise from her daddy and she grinned, looking on both sides to find him. Keeping his game up, Maddie was finally frustrated and looked to her mother, who tried to spoon feed her another bite only to have her turn her head away in refusal.

Those deep blue eyes of hers stared, unblinking at Haley and it didn't take long for her bottom lip to begin trembling, and her hands to grab a hold of her bib pulling at it and crying.

"Hey, quit teasing her and come around. You know she won't stop until you do. You'll be a momma's girl the day you realize how much your Papa Bear teases you Toots"

Nathan finally moved to share the chair Haley sat him, moving her over a bit and sent Madeline a growly smile. She was all smiles, and lit up at the sight of her daddy. The noise she gave off was a clear baby imitation of growling and her arms reached for Nathan, with her hands opening and closing rapidly.

"Hey little Bear" he cooed at her. "Is she all done," he asked Haley who'd gotten up from their seat. When she nodded, he grabbed for the white on the table and cleaned her up a bit before unstrapping her and smothering her face in kisses. Growls accompanied these kisses as usual.

Haley smiled at them when she went to clean off the high chair. She could watch them all day if she had to. The same with Jay.

"Okay, you Bear can go in here," he started placing her in the excersaucer, "and bounce that poop out"

"Nathan, stop that"

"You know it's true Hales. No matter how much of a girly girl we dress her and she is, when she's in this thing, she literally bounces out the poop. And she stinks bad."

Shoving him ahead of her, they both walked quietly into Jay's room, and got on either side of the sleeping boy's bed. Smoothing his hair back, Nathan kissed his sons' cheek before Haley did the other one.

"Time to wake up baby" Nathan smiled at the softness of her voice and how she always spoke with love to their children. He couldn't picture anyone else being the mother of his children, and teaching them how to be a good people.

He moved around in bed and when he realized that he was smothered between his two parents, he smiled and snuggled further into Haley's chest. "Hi mommy"

"Hi my sweet Jason. Did you know that five years ago today you were in my belly? You were kicking me really early in the morning, and I was so tired and really knew that you were ready to come out"

"But I didn't believe her buddy. I thought you weren't going to come because you had been in there for so long, but mommy knew exactly when you were going to come and she was so excited. We both were"

"And then you took mommy to the doctors and I came out of her belly and you loved me forever and ever" Jay finished the story he'd been told so many times. He moved from Haley and crawled onto Nathan, straddling his waist before he started bouncing. "Is my party now daddy? Can I go see it"

"Party isn't till later, so it's still some hours to go" Nathan responded.

"But you know what's first right? What is always so special on your birthday that only you get to do?"

His little nose crinkled like his momma's when he smiled before the blush rose to his cheeks. "I get my special Birthday date with Auntie Brooke!"

It was a tradition since her baby boy had turned a year old. Haley was devastated that she had to leave her baby boy on his birthday to go do some on-site training, but Brooke reassured her that he'd have a special day. It happened again his second birthday and since then Brooke demanded to have her God son for a special breakfast each year. They didn't just go out to eat, but also went to pick out anything he wanted, within reason, for his birthday.

Everyone in attendance really enjoyed themselves and Haley and Nathan felt extremely blessed by the people that showed up to show their love for Jay. He'd received gifts of all sorts but his favorite gift was the new puppy he'd been given. It had been decided months ago that Haley had so much going on with work, the kids and Nathan being gone, that te new family pet would have to be postponed for a few months. With Nathan home, they knew it was the perfect time to incorporate the pet into their lives. He was house broken, kid friendly and house dog ready for their family.

With guest gone, decorations taken down, and the food put away, Haley rocked Madeline as she drifted off to sleep in her arms, still nursing. Usually, she'd feed the baby right after her bath and give her some cuddle time with her daddy, but Nathan loved having some time with Jay on his birthday. Madeline smelled delicious in her arms and Haley couldn't help but nestle her face on the top of the baby's dark hair to breathe in her scent.

Nathan was sitting up in bed against the headboard when Haley sauntered into their bedroom and stopped at the sight of her son and husband.

"You know I had tons of girlfriends growing up and I was such a daddy's girl, so it was natural for me to want to see my husband someday with our daughter and to envision what it could be like. The one guy friend I really had didn't have the best relationship with his dad or mom, and I promised myself that not only would I have complete adoration for my little boy but that I could only marry someone I was certain would have that same love for our son."

Sitting on the bed next to him, she took in Jay lying on his side burrowed into Nathan's body. His head rested on his side, while one arm hung across his stomach clutching his shirt.

"Seeing you with him Nathan," she shook her head, as tears slid down her cheeks. She pressed herself next to Jay, and reached over to caress her husband's neck. "It's the best site I've ever seen. Knowing the kind of man he'll become because he has you to look up to and your support, just makes my heart, as corny as it sounds, burst! God I love him so much, and as hard as it was, I'm so glad we had our honeymoon baby. He's really the best thing that's ever happened to us"

It didn't take long for Nathan to lean in and kiss Haley. He was extremely moved by her words, and felt the exact same way. There was something special about their boy and he had a special bond with the little boy. There were very few times when he requested bedtime stories, preferring to simply be put down, but when he did, it was from his daddy that he wanted to hear from. A birthday bedtime story was the perfect ending to a great day celebrating their now five year old son.

With one look, they both knew there was no way they'd move the small child from their bed that night, and they both turned to shut off the lights near their side of the bed. They were both nearly asleep when soft cries were heard from the living room where Parker sat in his crate. After ignoring it for a second, the noise only grew louder and Haley sighed before searching for her husband's eyes in the dark room.

"Toots starts sleeping through the night and we decide to get a damn dog?" she sighed loudly, clearly expecting Nathan to get up to tend to the dog.

"Hales, we're set up pretty good here... wouldn't want to disturb the birthday boy would we? Thanks babe, I'm sure Parker will get used to the house soon."

She leaned over and kissed Jay's face before kissing Nathan and scooted off the bed muttering, "Damn first born baby and their birthday gifts"

* * *

**AN: Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Wasn't too much but just some normalcy I hope Will update as soon as I can. Don't worry about the sweet flow that's occurring, it'll get bumpy pretty soon - Review!**


	22. Chapter 20

**Chello People! No one's really ben reviewing at all.. hopefully you will start to. Enjoy.**

**Chapter 20**

* * *

Nathan Scott pulled his Range Rover into the Sara Isaacs Early Childhood School parking lot and made his way inside once he parked. Signing in and getting a visitors pass, he walked down the hall to his nephews' class first.

"You guys have five more minutes until we change stations" he heard one of the three teachers speaking aloud. He was noticed by the head teacher Ms. Rachel, as the students referred to her, and she greeted him with a smile as usual.

"Mr. Scott, hello, how are you! Andrew is just on the other side on the computers, Ill grab his things"

Nathan nodded, smiled and walked to the conjoined classroom. Seeing the blonde headed boy, he squatted down behind him before tapping his shoulder.

When Drew turned around, he smiled before taking off the headphones that were on his head. "Hi Uncle Nathan! Are we going to get ice cream again today" he jumped into his arms, insisting on being carried by his uncle.

"Not today buddy, we won't get it every time I pick you up, but for special times. Say bye to your teachers and we'll go grab Jay"

"See ya ladies" Nathan watched as he winked at his teachers while bidding them goodbye. He was a nut, and picked up on everything.

"You're becoming more and more like your favorite uncle everyday kid" walking down the adjacent hallway, Nathan made his way out to the playground where Jay's class currently were. Placing Drew on the ground, he grabbed his hand before giving a small wave at his sons' teachers. They knew he usually picked the boys up on Tuesday's and Thursday's and he was honest with them about being impatient and waiting in the pick-up line. Needless to say, they all enjoyed being able to see either of the Scott men come and grab the boys. Teachers had fantasies too.

Seeing the teacher point in the direction he and Drew stood, Nathan smiled prematurely, knowing this was one of three favorite parts of his day.

Jay's eyebrows went up, lips parted showing every one of his tiny teeth, and his little nose crinkled before he took off running and threw himself in his daddy's open arms. He hugged his neck tightly, then leaned back and pressed a quick kiss to his lips before he pulled back smiling.

Nathan wondered when he'd grow out of those kisses and start thinking kissing his dad on the lips was gross. He expected him to continue them with Haley, but knew it'd be different with him. Whenever he demanded a kiss from the little boy, whether it was bedtime or one of them were leaving the other, he'd kiss his lips without a second thought. He didn't mind them at all. In his eyes, Jay was still his little baby that would come at him with a wide, slobbery mouth and lay one on him anywhere he could reach. His dad was affectionate with him and Lucas and he vaguely remember a story of them stopping with the mouth kisses by the time they were five years old. With Jay just reaching that age, Nathan knew he'd have to take all he could get from his son. He was growing up and there was nothing they could do about it.

"Hey buddy" Out of the corner of his eye, he could see one teacher place her hand over her heart while tilting her head to the side, her lips forming an "o". Nodding at them, he thanked the teacher that swiped her ID card to unlock the door to let them back inside and grabbed Jay's belongings from his classroom before signing out and leaving.

After strapping both boys into their seats, Nathan turned on the radio and started on their way home. "Alright guys, what are we listening to today" Everyday he picked them up from school they had some sort of mini concert with the way the two sang in the back seat. It was easy to figure out what songs they learned with him and the ones they heard while they were with Brooke.

"Daddy turn it back, turn it back!"

"Jay, we're not listening to this song. It's lame buddy"

"PLEEEEEAAASSSEEEEEE!" they both begged and he could see their bottom lips poked out in the rear view mirror.

Turning the station back, he grimaced when he heard the boys belt out the pop song they _clearly_ learned while in Brooke's care.

"_Hey I just met you, and this is cwazy, so he-ors my numbor, so call me maybe….. hawd to look wight at you baby cause he-ors my numbor, so call my maybe"_

It was only so much Nathan could take, before he faked a phone call and turned the music off. When his "call" ended he started asking the boys are their day at school.

"Ms. Rachel let me read a book to the class Uncle Nathan"

"Really? A whole book by yourself?"

"Yep, today I did it! She said I did a good job" He smiled proud of himself. His dad's love of literature and books was something that was passed on and fed into Drew from day one. There hadn't been one single night that Lucas and Drew didn't spend at least thirty minutes before bed time, snuggled in his and Brooke's master bedroom reading together. Brooke never understood the patience that he had with their son when it came to sounding out the words and pronunciation, but she was so grateful. Even when Drew visited with his grandparents, they either skyped or spoke on the phone for their bedtime story.

"I'm sure you did a great job Drew and you know why? Cause you have like the smartest dad and aunt who do nothing but read in their spare time. They were both the biggest dorks in school too"

"Daddy, I wrote all my letters and numbers and my name too" Jay jumped into the conversation feeling left out.

Nathan wasn't too sure if he believed that, but was sure his son would show him once they were at home. "Really? You'll have to show me when we get home man."

Parking into the garage, they got out and made their way inside. "Where's my mommy" Drew asked for the second time, the first being when he didn't see her car outside.

"Not sure buddy. You guys want a snack before we do some homework?"

Both boys hopped up on the stools and waited for Nathan to bring them a snack "Alright, you want a Haley and Lucas kind of snack or a Nathan and Brooke kind of snack"

"Nathan and Brooke!" they cheered while giggling.

He pulled out two snack sized bags of hot Cheetos from the pantry and opened them along with two small bottles of water before handing them over.

"You guys excited for your trip with grandma and grandpa when school's out?"

"Yes, we made a countdown and I can take a day down every day!" Drew said excitedly. "Grandpa said when we come I can drive the mower with him and he's gonna take us to ride the horses again"

"I want a countdown too daddy"

Before he could answer they all heard the front door open and turned to see Brooke walk in carrying Maddie's car seat on her arm. "Mommy!" Drew slid down from his stool and rushed her, wrapping his arms around the top of her thighs, his head digging into her stomach.

"Hey Mr. Man! How goes it! Let me sit her down and I'll get ya" she sat the bags in her hand down, and smiled at Nathan as he reached for the car seat. "Alright mister" she grunted while hoisting Drew up against her chest and hugged him tightly to her chest.

"You have a good day at school, what color were you on?"

Drew immediately cast his eyes down before trying to wiggle out of her arms. With her grip too tight, he sighed before looking up at his mom and turning his head to the side. Before Brooke could say anything, his cheeks rose, causing his visible dimples to deepen and come alive.

"Don't do that" she tried

"Look mommy, we match" taking her face in his small hands, he kissed both of her cheeks. "Kiss mine mommy… we match"

_Dammit!_ He _knew_ her weak spot was the matching dimples he'd gotten from her. Every night when she kissed him goodnight, she'd kiss each cheek before telling him "we match" and he'd kiss her cheeks the same way. Even with Lucas' barely there dimples, there was no questioning where Drews' smile was inherited from.

"Your daddy's gonna get you" She kissed his cheeks before letting him drop from her embrace and playfully kicking his bottom when he scampered off giggling. "You have ten minutes to play, and then we're leaving Drew! I mean it, fifteen minutes"

"You're such a pushover Brooke"

"Look who's talking… you can lay her down you know? She didn't nap today, so you've got at least an hour before she's up"

Ignoring her, Nathan continued to walk around with Madeline asleep against his shoulder. "What's in the bag?"

"Oh! So, I wanted your opinion on this fabric I found. Luke will just tell me it looks great, or fine, but I want you to be brutally honest as usual and tell me what you think of it"

"What are you using it for?"

"Men's' pants for the mustard and grey, and the charcoal and orange would be for the men's ties"

"Tie is fine, but hell no for the pants for my taste, but in general I guess they're fine"

"Fine? Thanks for _that_ help. I sent Haley a text today about some stuff I moved around that we talked about. Mads is about to be into everything"

"What do you mean, she's barely doing anything but rolling around"

"She's doing more than rolling, baby girl is scooting and will be fully crawling any day now. Gosh I hope I'm having a girl" she placed her hand on her hardened, barely curved stomach and smiled.

"There's no way Bear's old enough to crawl yet" he denied. His baby girl was not about to be crawling and growing up this fast.

Seeing the scowl on his face, Brooke took a step back and towards her bags. "That's my cue… Drew, let's go. I wanna see your butt out here now or you have to walk home" she called out to Drew. Grabbing her bags, she went to the door and laughed when he came running pass her while yelling bye to Nathan.

Nathan checked the microwave clock before heading in the living room to lay Maddie down in the swing and strapping her in. He hoped she would wake up soon so she wouldn't be up all night. Going down the hall, he saw Jay working hard at his desk coloring.

"Whatcha got there lil man?"

"Homework… my teacher s'plained it to us so I can do it by myself daddy. You have to color the picture for the numbers and colors to match with each other. Guess what, the blue is number five! My favorite color and how old I am" he smiled up at his dad proudly. "When is mommy coming home?"

"Well mommy had to work her long day today. Twelve hours, so check your chart and tell me what time she gets home"

It was Haley's idea to make Jay a chart regarding the times of both parents work schedule. Going to the laminated construction paper, he moved the block to the beginning first box that read "6:00 am" and counted twelve times down before landing on "6:00 pm"

"She comes home at six o'clock daddy! What time is it now? How much longer!?"

"Well it's just after four o'clock, so she will be home in about two and a half hours. Enough time for me to give you and Sissy dinner and a bath. Mommy will be home in time for maybe one show and bed time."

"What about desert time? Will she be home to have desert with me?"

"Definitely home in time for desert with you"

Both Haley and Nathan hated not being able to always have dinner as a family, but she made sure that happened only three days a week. It was still three days, but it was the best she could do. With the kids bedtime being between seven thirty and eight, Haley was certain to be home for desert, bedtime and would have time to watch at least one of Jay's shows with him.

With Jay and Drew's school session from noon till three thirty, it never hurt for him to be up a little later, but with Kindergarten starting this Fall, they were sure to stick with his bedtime schedule as much as possible to prepare him for the early mornings and full day at school.

Letting the Jay decide what he wanted for dinner, Nathan laughed at Jay, who was practically dipping his whole hand in barbeque sauce instead of just his chicken nuggets, and encouraged him to start eating his green beans and macaroni. Maddie sat in her high chair in front of Nathan smiling. A chicken broth and vegetable puree Haley home-made and frozen is what he warmed her up for dinner and his little Bear loved it. She never really fought them on eating, and he was glad. Once they were both done, he carried Maddie to their bathroom and started to fill the Jacuzzi tub. When the temperature was perfect, he reached under the sink and grabbed a hold of the small baby seat and sat it in the water before stripping the baby and placing her in.

She kicked her little feet and hands, slashing water everywhere, and looked up when Jay climbed in with her. She screamed her little head off, her limbs going stiff as her face lit up at the site of her brother and daddy making faces at her.

"You like your bath don't you bear? Is it warm enough Jay?"

"Yea daddy. Can we have some bubbles?"

"How about some bath paint instead" he went to Haley's sink and reached under for the bath paint and got out a few colors for Jay.

"Can Maddie have one" he said lifting her small foot up and painting it blue before giggling loudly.

"Naa, remember last time she just ate it. Stand up buddy so I can wash you, then you can play more."

After washing Jay two times, he lifted Maddie up, having her underarms and chest lean against his left arm while she stood, and washed her with the other. He constantly had to steady her with his right hand when she'd start stomping her feet in the water and slipping from his hold.

"You're a crazy Bear you know that" he poured water over her head, laughing when she blinked her eyes rapidly, licking the water droplets, and flailing her arms.

"Daddy, where'd it go?"

"Where'd what go buddy?" he sat Maddie back in her seat.

"Her pee-pee. It's gone"

Nathan wore the same confused expression his son had but had nothing to say that could distract the young boy.

"Maddie doesn't have a pee-pee buddy"

"But you and mommy change her diaper cause she goes pee-pee all the time. So where's her pee-pee like mine"

Nathan grimaced when Jay stood up and proceeded to check out his privates before staring at Maddie confused.

"Jay, little boys and little girls are different. Like you know how mommy and Aunt Brooke have long girly hair, but me and Uncle Lucas have short boy hair? That's how it is for your pee-pee's too"

"So since I have a short boy pee-pee, Maddie is gonna have a long girly pee-pee?"

_Damn_. That did sound logical, but it was completely wrong. _Why the hell couldn't Haley be here for this._ It wasn't like this was the first time they'd bathed the kids together, but this was the first time Jay's question had come up.

"No buddy. Boys and girls have different parts to go pee-pee with"

"Like what part do I have? This" he pulled on it, and Nathan buried his face in his hands before letting out a sigh.

"Buddy, that is called a… penis. You use your penis to pee in the pot okay"

"Oh… a penis? I thought it was a pee-pee?"

"Yea, well it's a pee-pee too.. but it's real grown up name is a penis Jay. You ready to get out?" He wanted this whole conversation over with as soon as possible.

"Okay" he let his daddy lift him out of the tub, and start to dry him off.

"Alright, your clothes are on your bed, go get dressed" he wrapped the towel around his body snuggly before sending him off.

Lifting the top of the drain, to let the water out, Nathan then grabbed Maddie and sat her on his lap, before putting the hooded duck towel on her head and wrapping her up. He carried her into his and Haley's bed and started drying her off. He was close to securing her diaper on before applying some lotion when Jay walked into the room.

"Daddy, will Maddie have long hair _and_ a long penis"

He was flabbergasted, thinking that conversation was over and forgotten about. But then he pictured his son getting dressed while mulling over the facts in his head and wanting conclusions. He was so his mothers' child.

"Alright Jay, listen up. You are a boy, so you have a penis. Maddie is a girl, so she doesn't have one. Only boys can have a penis"

"Men too, like you?"

"Yes, men too, boys and men have a penis"

"So what do girls have?"

"Well," he started. He looked down at Maddie wondering at what age she'd get curious about the difference between boys and girls and prayed that she'd take after him instead of his super smart wife like his son had. "Girls have a vagina"

He couldn't stop the word from coming out, and wondered if that was the word that Haley would have used. Vagina? There couldn't have been a more kid-friendly word to tell him, so that had to do.

"A vagina… so Mommy's a girl, and Aunt Brooke too. Do they have a vagina? And My teachers too! They have a vagina right daddy"

In that moment Haley walked into their bedroom to see her husband a bright shade of red, her daughter kicking her feet while half dressed, and Jay bouncing on his toes, his eyes gleaming as if he'd just figured out a big secret.

"Hey guys" she greeted them, bending down to scoop Jay up in her arms.

"Hi mommy, guess what?"

"What baby?" she said kissing his nose.

"Maddie has a vagina!"

"A what?" clearly she'd heard him wrong.

"A vagina, like you do cause you're a girl! And aunt Brooke too. But me, uncle Lucas and daddy have a penis cause we're boys…. Drew too, right daddy, since he's a boy too?"

"Yep" he didn't dare look at Haley, instead he focused on dressing the baby in front of him before lifting her up and walking out of the room.

"Jay, who taught you penis and vagina"

"Daddy did. In the bath tub, I didn't see Maddie's pee-pee and daddy said she didn't have one like me since she was a girl, and told me it was not just a pee-pee, but a penis. He said that girls with long hair don't have a long penis, but they have a vagina, and boys with short hair have a penis cause we're boys."

She should have been prepared for something like this, but wasn't at all and now understood her husband appearance when she walked into their bedroom moments ago. Taking him into the living room, she saw Nathan now sitting on the couch with Maddie and her boppy, setting up the Apple Tv to a Veggie Tales short movie.

Plopping Jay down on the couch, she went to change her shirt before coming back out and sitting next to Jay on the couch. She took Madeline from Nathan and smiled and kissed at the baby's face, greeting her for the first time that evening. She'd seen her earlier that day during her lunch break, never able to be away from her the entire day. When her happy squeals quieted down, Haley started nursing her, and when she burped and switched her to the other side, she fell asleep while still eating.

"Daddy, does Grandma Deb have a vagina like mommy cause she's a girl?"

Nathan looked to his wife, and grimaced at the glare she was sending him.

"How about I go and put Bear down, and you can finish the movie with mommy" before Haley could protest, Nathan went to scoop Maddie up, signaling to Haley to break the hold the baby still had on her chest, and quickly made his way down to her nursery vaguely hearing Haley tell him to burp her.

It was roughly thirty minutes later when Nathan watched Haley come out of the shower and climb into bed next to him.

"So it's good to know that I don't have a long penis. This marriage would be a little weird for the both of us huh?"

"So not funny Hales. Tonight was kinda horrible to be honest. I didn't even expect him to ask me that. I'll tell you one thing, that's the last time I'm bathing them together."

"It's not that bad, he was bound to start asking those questions soon anyway now that Maddie's here. I'm surprised it took so long. Now what I would like to know is why you taught him vagina. I can handle penis, but vagina? He'll never stop saying that word now. We just got him to stop saying boobies"

"What was I supposed to say? It's a conversation I didn't expect to have for a few more years, and my plan now is to pretend it never happened. I mean I just taught our five year old son the words penis and vagina. Bear will never learn those words."

Moving closer to him, straddled his lap, and moved his hands away from his face. "I missed you today Scott. Thanks for taking good care of our babies when I'm gone."

"Hey," he said interrupting her, and stopping her hands from removing his shirt. "what's with Brooke starting to baby proof things? She said Bear's about to be fully crawling any day?"

"Yea can you believe it!"

"No, I can't believe it, cause it's not true. Madeline is not crawling yet. I haven't seen anything but rolling"

She went back to pushing his shirt up, coaxing his arms out, slowly kissing up his chest in between talking, "babe, she's about to start crawling really soon. Like real crawling. You haven't seen all she can do because you really never put her down." She pulled the shirt off of him entirely and ran her fingers through his thick hair. "You hold her constantly, so you haven't seen all she can do. Kid is on the move now."

"What the hell? Crawling? It's too soon isn't? Jay crawled early, but he also was with Brooke who wouldn't carry him and Drew at the same, so they both moved around like crazy. Bear should not be crawling this soon, she'll probably hurt herself"

"You're too soft when it comes to her ya know. I should be the sappy one not wanting her to be crawling yet, but you steal all my mother daughter thunder from me" she leaned back and looked at the scowl he wore and kissed his lips chastely. "Too bad it's soooo sexy" She moved in capturing his lips in a searing kiss urging him to drop the subject of their kids and be in the moment with her.

When he wasn't giving as much as she was, she leaned back frustrated "Do I need to have a different kind of talk with you about a penis and vagina, cause I'm really trying here babe. You do know I can do this without your consent right?" she moved down to his boxers before reaching her hands inside. "All it takes is a little touch and …" she smiled when she felt him ready and he flipped them over, hovering on top of her and attacking her neck. "I win"

It was two days later when Nathan walked into the house carrying Madeline's car seat with Haley in tow sporting the same somber look as Jay.

"Buddy, I know you're gonna miss your teachers, but don't' forget that summer starts and you and Drew can go on your trip with Grandma and Grandpa tomorrow. Aren't you excited about that"

He nodded his head, a bright smile now adorning his face. "My bag is already packed, I can't wait"

"I just can't believe that those teachers won't be a part of his life anymore and that he's no longer a preschooler, but will be a full time student"

"Hales, it's not like the kid is going to college, it's just elementary. Relax okay. What we need to do is finish getting Maddie's stuff ready to go for the weekend."

It was a big step for both he and Haley to allow Madeline to go back with Nathan's parents for the weekend. With Haley working a double shift Friday, and Nathan working, they decided to let Maddie leave with the boys in the morning and spend Friday and Saturday with the grandparents. They were heading there anyway with Brooke and Lucas to celebrate Dan's fifty-sixth birthday. She'd be back in Haley and Nathan's arms Sunday morning, but they both would have a hard time letting her leave.

The next morning, before the Scotts Suburban was packed and car seats were put in, hundreds of tears were shed when Haley left for work, kissing the kids goodbye.

When Haley was finally home Saturday, she'd woken in the afternoon to Brooke announcing that lunch was ready in the kitchen. As much as she missed her kids, she was excited to see Lucas and Nathan waiting for her and Brooke to eat lunch with them.

"Pizza and beer for lunch" she asked walking towards the table and dropping herself onto Nathan's lap.

"Yep, at least for you guys" Brooke started "you know I think the last time we did this was right before I found out I was pregnant with Drew"

"Well altogether yea, but me and Hales have our specialty of wings and shots quite often" Nathan said squeezing Haley's side.

"Haley, check this out" Brooke said typing on the lap top that sat on the table before turning it for Haley to look at. "I finally got a Facebook, and have already got over fifty friends since last week. Pretty much all of our class from LU is on and I'm finding someone new every day"

Moving off Nathan's lap and onto the chair next to her sister in law, Haley smiled at the faces she was seeing. "Oh my word, is that Jessica Leonard? She's got a beautiful little girl, I didn't know she was married!"

"Haley, we barely kept in touch with anyone, of course you didn't know that! You need to get on here, Me and Luke are now"

"You're on Facebook" Nathan said laughing at his brother.

"I was forced to be on facebook actually. But it's not so bad"

"Not so bad "Mr. I refuse to trust the internet and even send pictures through email to family"

"Yea, yea. This has privacy settings and everything. No one can see anything we post without being our accepted friend. Complete privacy."

"What do you mean "we"?"

"I made us a joint account" Brooke chimed in. " I was not about to let him get a single account, and have a bunch of skanks sending my husband friend request. I'm sure everyone from school will be jealous anyway seeing as though I have the hottest husband in all of our class" Haley shook her head at Brooke before grabbing their lap top and starting up an account herself.

"How did you find everyone from your class? What'd you do memorize their names?" Nathan didn't really like the sound of Facebook, but knew his wife would be into reconnecting with everyone.

"No, with the information you put in, you can add schools and stuff, and there's even a group for our class. Just type in LU and our class year and it'll take you to the page. I found everyone through there. Like we had a successful class, but damn wait till you see some people Hales. Like Gavin Mitcham, he's gone downhill, and that's putting it nicely"

"Brooke, really?" Lucas scolded. "That's what teenagers use this social media for"

"Shut it Broody. I'm simply basking in the fact that the first guy I dated in college that publicly dumped and humiliated my is finally getting what he deserves"

"Alright, we're on. Nate, I set it up with your email since I get so many from work already. I'm gonna upload the pictures we took at the park a few weeks ago and then start looking for people. Hey, you can even check for guys in your unit! I'm sure they have one too. This could be good for both of us"

"Yea, until we get tons of requests from people we don't want to be in touch with. All you read about in the news is how much drama Facebook brings."

"Don't be a party pooper Nate, Me and Luke are doing it, and I'll even make sure we're your first friend request to make you feel all safe. It'll be fun, I promise. Besides, we're so behind on getting a Facebook. The entire world has one, kids have one nowadays."

"Look, I've already got two request from people from LU! I think I'm gonna like this" Haley said smiling at the screen, clicking "accept" for both requests.

Hearing a noise from the island, Nathan went to grab his phone and read the text he'd just got. Haley, Brooke and Lucas sent him a curious look when he started laughing aloud and he simply showed them the text he'd received.

"**Why the hell are my grandsons talking about penises and vaginas? I'm gonna kill you boys!"**

* * *

**Simple chapter, with not much going on. Hope you enjoyed it. Review.**


	23. Update

Hi all. I'm sooo grateful for the new readers I've gotten. I've seen a couple people add this story to their favorites and alerts, and I'm so grateful. This isn't a note saying I'm done with the story, I swear I wouldn't do that. Just owe you guys an explanation for the less frequent updates. Well besides the fact that I'm on the pivotal parts of the story that take much focus and time to write, my grandmother(haha) has gotten me hooked on The Vampire Diaries. I swore up and down I'd never watch the show, but let's just say, I drank the blood, died, then fed on a human lol Those of you who are fans can see why I haven't put down the dvds and kept going on the journey! Lol I started two weeks ago, and I have only the last two episodes of Season 3 to go! Freaking out, but excited. Hate that I'll have to wait till October for the new season, and although I know the spoilers of what I'll be seeing, I'm so excited for it. Anywho, TVD has kept me away from writing, but I'm glad that I can honestly say that I love OTH so much better and it'll always be my fav

So my household is also moving in the next three months, but have no idea where we are going as of now. School starts next week, and as of today my family has learned my Aunt (moms sister) has stage 4 cancer. It's hitting us hard and unexpectedly. If the chemo doesn't work, she's got 6 months left.. She has a 6 year old daughter and older grown-out of the house boys. So a lot is going on in my life, but I'm actually hoping that writing can be my escape from it all when I need that time away. So don't quote me every time, but I plan to write more. It is some difficult things in the chapters that I need to get on with but without having everything in one chapter, and to be able to spread it out takes some thinking, focusing and draft after draft So please, if you're the type, keep my family in your prayers, thoughts, and whatnot. I appreciate the reviews and how much your response is steady coming. Once again welcome new readers Expect an update.. hoping by no later than Tuesday maybe? Thanks again! You guys are the best.

Jennifer


	24. Chapter 21

**Hi everyone! **

**So sorry for this extended time, my grandmother had me to start watching The Vampire Diaries, and guilty as charged I fell under the spell! So I have been on a Vamp kick non stop and havne't even opened my computer to write much at all. I apologize. Also I believe I posted about my Aunt being diagnosed w Stage Four Cancer. So my family is dealing with a lot right now. School also is back, and I'm taking a couple of classes, but also having to do somewhat practicums and such as well as normal Nannying as well. So I'm a bit busy and with no OTH on, I'm finding it hard to be inspired to write Naley. But never fear, I just had to get back at it and make it so that everything doesn't happen in just 2 chapters and that's it… kinda hard! But I'm gonna try to update once every two weeks from now on!**

**Hope you're ready for the ride we're about to take. Thanks to Kellay for all the help you've given me on this upcoming half of the story! It's been needed and so appreciated! Happy reading and plz leave your thoughts. You'll surely have them **

**Chapter 21**

_Nathan followed Haley outside, both of them making their way through the cars crammed in the driveway until they reached hers that was parked on a side street. Nathan had flown home for the weekend and without much persuading, he convinced Lucas to drive down with him to see Haley. It wasn't hard seeing as Brooke and Lucas had a pretty steady long distance relationship going on, and his older brother took any chance he could to see the bubbly brunette. _

"_You get some rest, take your meds, and call me in the morning once you're up. I only have one more full day here with you, and as much as I want to spend it with you, I understand if you're not really up for doing anything" he eased a thick lock of her hair behind her ear, before letting his fingers linger on the smooth skin of her cheek._

"_No, I want to see you too. I'll give you a text first thing in the morning when I'm up. Just make sure you're not completely wasted and hung-over" She squinted at Nathan, daring him to challenge her request or deny the fact that it was a possibility. _

"_Who me?" he brought her closer into his arms and kissed her neck._

"_Yes. And I am not that much of a light weight that I can't handle a beer, you just have awful taste in beer Scott. I'm gonna get going. Hook up with Jake so you and Luke can crash at his place, or just come back with Brooke and Peyton. Either is fine with us all, just don't leave me hanging in the morning. I wanna spend as much time as I can with you."_

_He leaned down and kissed her lips softly before pulling back "I promise Hales" he kissed her once more before pulling her into his arms and squeezing her tight. He loved hugging her._

_He waited until her car rounded the corner before going back into the music filled house. Smoke immediately filled his lungs as he walked towards the kitchen seeing Brooke and Lucas in a circle of people playing a game of "I Never". Unlike him, his brother was never one for these types of parties and he knew Brooke was the only reason Luke had agreed to come. It was no surprise that guys wanted her, and Luke made sure that everyone knew she was off limits whether he was in town or back home._

"_Hey Nate, you in? I'd love to find out some dirt on my future BIL" Brooke called to him. This wasn't the first time she'd referred to him as her brother in law and it always amazed him that it never freaked his brother out. She was certain she would marry Lucas and wasn't afraid to voice it._

"_Sure why not, I need to warn my brother about the vixen that's clearly planned a future for him" He took a seat on the other side of the island sitting next to a blonde that was taking a shot although no one said anything._

"_Don't mind her, she'll be drinking to anything you throw out there, right Open Legs" Brooke said to Nathan, sassing the girl beside him._

"_I learned from the best Brooke. We all know your doors and legs are open twenty-four seven"_

_Lucas grabbed a hold of Brooke's waist before she could reach the blonde and stopped her. "Babe, just cool it. Let's just get out of here"_

"_No, my turn! I never had sex with the assistant football coach after having my so-called heart broke because my boyfriend dumped me. Drink up bitch!" Brooke slammed the drink in front of her, some of it splashing on the counter and her._

"_Babe, stop. Just walk away" Lucas's hold on her arm tightened as he pulled her away from the group._

_Nathan grabbed himself a drink before following the pair. He might have been only a couple of years older than the students here, but he was glad this wasn't his scene anymore. Sure he loved hanging out and having a few drinks, but there was a maturity level that could change the whole night for him._

_He rounded the corner and stopped short when he found Luke sitting down while Brooke stood over him. They were whispering to one another and Nathan took a step back when they started their usual making out. He figured he could search for Jake and Peyton, but when he bumped into someone, his large build knocking her down, he became distracted._

"_Whoa, sorry about that. Here, let me" he reached down and grabbed the blonde's elbow, pulling her up. "oh, hi" he said nervously when he saw that it was the blonde Brooke had bitched out only moments ago. She looked to be in bad shape with her hair a tangled mess and her eyes puffy and red._

"_Thanks. You should go, I know I look a mess and am the laughing stock slut of the party thanks to Brooke" she went to walk away, but tripped and was grateful when Nathan grabbed her before she could hit the ground._

* * *

Nathan squinted at computer screen and ran his fingers through his hair, clearly frustrated. They'd gotten this Facebook about two weeks ago, and they'd had many friend requests they'd accepted, but there was one that constantly appeared no matter how many times he declined it.

He first saw all the postings Haley made in her class's group, and how two of her friends' lived not too far with their families. He read the comments between the women and laughed at all the exclamation marks that clearly showed how excited they were. He'd first noticed his account being tagged in a post and cringed at the name Tracy Baker asking how they were and if they had any children. Haley never responded to her questions, and he realized that after ignoring and declining her request, she wouldn't give up.

Exiting out of Facebook, Nathan opened his email and became angry at the amount of email's he received from Tracy. He scanned through the emails, each one different than the last, and unconsciously clenched his fist in anger at her words.

* * *

"_It's the one with Collin Farrell and that chick. He's like FBI or something and they take her and he has to find her, but she pisses her pants and he gives into the torture and tells them."_

"_Okay.."_

"_And he finds out she was fine all along and it was only a test. He blew the whole damn mission, and like gets fired, and that's how the movie ends"_

_Nathan shook his head, and laughed out loud. He had a good buzz going on but the extreme-buzz she had going made his all the better._

"_Actually the movie continues and ends with finding out he was double crossed by one of their own and he pretty much saves the day. Oh and the movie's called The Recruit and the bad guy was Al Pacino"_

"_Well excuse me Mr. Movie Know It All. All I really know is that Collin is hot in it just like with everything else he's in. He's such a badass."_

_Since he helped her to a nearby couch, he'd been stuck there listening to her talk about anything that popped into her head. She didn't seem like the monster they all made her out to be, and he could relate to being the laughing stock and being punished for it. _

"_Well it's a movie, so for all we know he's really a soft ass in real life"_

"_Don't they torture you in the army? When you don't obey, or like isn't there hazing? My great grandfather used to tell us stories of how he was hazed until he broke"_

"_Naa, it's not really like that. I mean yea, they put you through some stuff when you're in a different combat type to prepare you, but nothing like they used to do back then"_

"_Yea, like what?"_

"_I'm in more of the mechanic and technology side of the Army, but people talk and you hear things. There's different stories out there- typical heat exposure to prepare you for walks in the desert. They'll psych you out some to try and get answers out of you.."_

"_Aha! Like in the movie. You might as well be the FBI or something"_

"_It's hard enough being in the army and away from my family and friends. Not really sure I'm cut out for FBI life, or lack of one. Then there's all the secrets you'd have to keep and that's not something I could have in my future"_

"_You mean like with a wife and kids?" _

_Nathan saw the seriousness in her eyes and in that quick second it seemed as though she'd completely sobered up and focused on what he was really saying. _

"_Well yea" he mulled over the question another second before continuing. "I hate not being able to a tell Haley every single thing about where I am and she feels the same way. It's my job for now, but I can't imagine having something like the CIA or FBI being my actual lifestyle. I wouldn't put her through that"_

"_You seem pretty sure of yourself that you'll be with her in the future. What if this is it for you guys?"_

"_Haley is my future, I don't question that at all"_

"_Yea yea, all you guys say that but you don't mean it! I was someone's future you know, that is until he found another present to fulfill some needs. Everyone wants to spread rumors and say the breakup was my fault and I was being a slut, but what they don't know is how I walked in on Brian screwing some girl in the quad dorms"_

_Nathan wasn't really sure what to say after that slip of personal information. She was full of drama, sure, but he could also see a different side to her. A human side that was broken. _

"_Well any guy that cheats on a girl is a dick, and any girl that cheats on a guy is a bitch. It's happened once to me and I refused to date girls that thought they were better than everyone else. Screw me once, shame on you. Screw me twice, shame on me.. something like that"_

_When Nathan didn't get an immediate response, he looked over to see the girl staring straight ahead in a daze. "You know, I'm sure your friends are supposed to keep you away from me. Haley probably warned them to make sure I didn't get within two feet of you. We were close before, Me and Haley. She's one of the nicest people I've ever met, especially being a girl. Most are catty, bitchy, and selfish"_

"_None of those words describe Haley" he cut in to agree._

"_Not by a long shot. I kept disappointing her. She was teaching me to be a "good girl" like her but I guess it's just not me. Kind of a lost cause from day one I guess. But she's a good one"_

"_Alright, this is supposed to be a party right? Cheer up, let's go finish that game of I never and have a little fun. You don't need to mope around and let anyone ruin a night of fun" He stood up and waited for her to do the same before walking back into the kitchen. She wasn't as bad as he thought and if Haley could see something good in her, then he figured there had to be something there._

"_You're back Trace… you must want to get drunk huh" a guy that was a little shorter than Nathan taunted her before smirking. "I never cheated on my boyfriend with the football coach"_

_Looking to Nathan, she considered his words from before. She didn't have to go along with the rumor everyone thought to be true, but figured it didn't matter. Taking a shot, she saw the look Nathan was giving her and smirked herself._

"_My turn, I've never been in the CIA and killed someone on a mission"_

_Nathan shook his head and laughed. If she'd drink to a lie, so would he._

"_Cheers" he said quickly downing the shot, the liquid burning the back of his throat going down. This was only the beginning of a nearly hour long game of I never with the two of them taking shots at one another jokingly._

* * *

_Tracy, this is getting old already. Please do not contact me anymore. I nor Haley have anything to say to you. Please stop pestering us._

He knew the simple message didn't do justice to what he really wanted to say to her. That would have been more of a "you conniving whore, fuck off and stop emailing me" kind of email.

"Earth to Nathan"

Jumping at the unexpected voice, Nathan turned to see his brother leaning against the door frame holding two longneck beers in each hand.

"What the hell man you scared me. Don't you know how to knock" he pushed away from the lap top after closing his web browser.

"Umm yea I do, and I know how to ring a bell which I did several times before I used my key and came in. What were you staring at on there, porn? I thought that was only a college phase"

"Trust me Lucas your best friend keeps me so satisfied that porn is non-existent in my life"

"Yep, definitely didn't want to hear that. Anyway, let's go I'm not pausing the games anymore"

"Luke I'm really not all that interested in seeing the Olympics, I'm just doing it to humor you. Besides what I want to see isn't on for a couple more hours."

They made their way into the living room, each cracking open a beer before digging into the Pizza Hut that sat before them.

Lucas could tell that something was off with his brother from the moment he walked into the office and saw his physical appearance. He was tense and something was definitely troubling him.

Part of Nathan was glad that Lucas had shown up. He and his brother could easily be distracted from all else when they were together but nothing seemed to be able to distract Nathan from the hurricane that Tracy was sure to bring along.

"Be back in a minute" Nathan moved from the couch before Lucas could respond and made his way down the hall and into his bedroom. His phone constantly vibrated in his pocket and when he finally unlocked it, he found six different emails from Tracy all saying that she needed to talk to him and that he couldn't ignore her forever.

He knew first hand that Tracy can't be ignored.

* * *

_You've reached Haley, leave a message_

"_Hales, baby please call me back. I need to see you so that I can explain everything. You know me Hales, you know I'd never do anything to jeopardize what we have so just talk to me" he pulled the phone away from his ear, glancing at the time. "We're leaving in just a few hours. Luke wants to get in before we hit traffic and I have that early flight out tomorrow, so please I need to see you before we're on the road. At least call Brooke or…"_

_To review your recording, press 1.._

"_Ugh!" Nathan controlled the need he had to simply throw his phone and ran his hands through his already dismantled hair._

"_Still no word from Haley"_

_He looked up to see Tracy wrapped in a short blue towel. She stood in the same doorway Haley stood in only ten minutes ago when she'd walked into the room to see him face down on the bed, Tracy next to him._

* * *

**OKAY! Please don't hate me! I know it's SUPER short! I'll try to have an update by at least not this coming Monday, but the following Monday! Hope you enjoyed this peek into what's coming and will review! Thanks!**


	25. Chapter 22

**Sorry this is so late. Wanted to make promises of quicker updates but life keeps taking turns that shock us all. A family that I babysit for has three beautiful kids, and Oct 16****th****, 3 year old Jackson was diagnosed with Leukemia **** Everyone's doing everything they can to help out with their 6 year old and 9 month old while mom and dad spend their days in the Childrens Hospital. So with focusing on that and such, I will update as much as I can. But I can honestly just say that my heart and mind is elsewhere. Please keep the Houser family in your thoughts and prayers!**

**Also, the fics I'm reading, at least 18 of them, and there haven't been many updates on those lately, so it's kinda like OTH is non existing right now and the Naley love isn't visible. In the last chapter's ending it went along the lines of "Haley walked in to see Nathan lying face down in the bed with Tracy next to him blah blah, I changed that.. just read and you'll see how she found him" **

**Also (sorry for changes) The guys flew into NC from Texas, then had to drive to the girls' school, from there. Just had to clear that up.**

**Anywho, here's the next chapter- enjoy and leave feedback.**

* * *

**Chapter 22**

_It was just after ten o'clock when Haley peeked her head into Brooke's room, hoping that both she and Lucas were decent. Normally she knew better than to wake her roommate before noon on the weekend, especially if Lucas was in town. _

"_Brooke" Haley whispered seeing the two of them spooned together. She prayed they had clothes on. _

"_Hales?" What's going on?" It was clear that she was half asleep, but knew only Haley would be brave enough to wake her so early._

"_Hey, where'd you guys stash Nathan? Peyton said he didn't leave with her and Jake, and I can't get a hold of him"_

"_He didn't leave with us Haley" Next to her, Lucas groaned loudly before turning over to bury his face in a pillow. Peeling the covers away, Brooke slipped on a robe over Lucas' shirt she was wearing and followed Haley out of her room, pulling her door closed._

"_You and Luke didn't hang out with Nathan when I left? Did you see him at all once I was gone?" Haley didn't understand why he wasn't crashed on the couch when she woke up this morning and figured she would get some answers from one of her friends, but so far she was having no such luck._

"_When you left, I was about to rip Tracy a new one until Luke pulled me away. Nate was there in the kitchen with us but after that I didn't see him at all really. Sorry Hales, me and Luke were just spending time together and I figured he just stuck with Peyton and Jake. Have you called him?"_

"_I've been calling his cell for the last twenty minutes Brooke, I don't get it. He always answers my calls and if for whatever reason he can't talk, he'll text me at least so I don't worry"_

_Moving closer to rub her friends back, Brooke tried to best to reassure her. "Hales, I'm sure he's fine, He could be with one of the guys they played ball with yesterday. Maybe he couldn't find anyone of us, so he caught a cab to a motel or something"_

"_That makes no sense though, he wouldn't do that. His phone is going straight to voicemail, so he's got it off. We need to call the police or something. I mean he has to be missing right? It's not like he found some girl last night and is…" before she could finish Brooke's head popped up with a tell-all look. "Brooke what's with the look?"_

"_He um… he was playing I Never with us when I went off on Tracy and Luke pulled me away… Luke was distracting me really well but I'm almost sure I saw him later with Tracy"_

"_What do you mean with Tracy?"_

_Haley completely trusted Nathan, but the thought of him being near Tracy had doubts entering her mind. Haley never understood the effect that Tracy had on guys but no matter what, they always seemed to fall for her bs and flock to her._

"_He was talking to her I think. I mean I could be wrong Haley, who knows I was drinking"_

"_Brooke, don't lie to me..." she spoke quietly, and on the verge of tears "was Nathan talking to her?"_

_All she did was nod, and Haley grabbed her purse, keys, and was out the door._

_Brooke walked back in her room to see Lucas sitting up fiddling with his phone. "She hasn't heard from him all morning? What the hell, he better be back by the time I leave"_

_Brooke knew Lucas wasn't really worried about Nathan's wellbeing, but more about him doing something stupid that'd get him stranded here, and most of all in deep shit with Haley._

_The bright light shined in on Nathan's face, forcing him to pull the pillow over his head. His head was pounding, stomach twisting in agony, and the ringing in his ears signaled to him what last night actually cost him. He had a massive hangover, something he hadn't experienced in years. Rolling over until he fell off the bed, his large body landed with a thud and he groaned in pain before making his way to the bathroom. He urinated longer than he expected, and almost instantly threw up the liquids in his stomach, leaving a horrible taste in his mouth._

"_What the hell happened last night?" he spoke aloud._

"_Stop hogging the bathroom and I'll tell you"_

_He wasn't sure where the echoing voice even came from, but knowing that it sure as hell wasn't Haley, Brooke or Peyton, meant he was in deep shit. Exiting the bathroom, he saw the blond from last night undressing, leaving her in a bra as she went for the skirt she was wearing._

"_Whoa, what the hell! What happened last night? What the hell are you doing here?"_

"_Nate, don't be that way. Last night was fun, don't you remember"_

_As bad as his headache was, and although he felt as though he could pass out at any moment, he remembered everything about last night. Most importantly, he knew for a fact that nothing happened between the two of them. But the fact that she was still there made him a little uneasy._

"_What I remember is drinking way too much, and not being able to find my friends to leave with them. Brandon said I could crash here…. But you were supposed to be gone"_

"_My girl never showed up so Brandon said I could crash here"_

"_Yea, I told you to crash in one of the upstairs rooms that were empty, not down here you lying bitch. What the hell are you still doing here? You need get yourself dressed and leave" Brandon came in having heard the loud voices. "Sorry Nate, you crashed and she came in a few hours later saying her ride still hadn't showed"_

_They both watched as Tracy went into the bathroom, closing the door and started up the shower. "Man, this is fucked up" Nathan ran his hands over his face sighing. "Why the hell would she come in here, knowing I'm with Haley"_

"_Listen, she was upstairs, I took her there myself. She was pretty wasted and crashed. All I can think is that she came down just a while ago and jumped in bed with you. You got nothing to worry about. She's just pulling her normal bullshit as far as I can tell. She's desperate like that"_

"_Yea… but Haley sure as hell won't see it that way. Alright I'm gonna get out of here in a minute, thanks for letting me crash."_

"_No problem, let me know if you need me to vouch to Haley for you. Keep safe when you get back over there man."_

"_Thanks man"_

_Brandon left out of the house to start cleaning up out back and Nathan sighed hearing the shower cut off. Looking to the nightstand where he sat his phone the night before he was surprised when it wasn't there. Opening the drawer, he found it empty sans boxes of unopened condoms and a tv remote. He looked behind the table and finally spotted it. It was now in three pieces , battery not in sight, making him wonder how many calls he'd obviously missed._

_By the time he fished out all three scattered pieces of his phone, he was searching for a missing show while the phone turned on and loaded. Seeing all the calls he'd missed from Haley broke his heart and the few messages she'd left all had her worrying for him instead of being angry._

_His brothers message was more of a warning muttering things like "kill you for putting Haley through this…..leaving with or without you in two hours…..get your act together…. Not in high school anymore" _

_He reached for his shoes to put on when he heard footsteps coming towards the room. He looked up and saw the angry, yet relieved look on his girlfriend's face as she noticed him. _

"_Haley, baby let me explain what happened, I'm so sorry.."_

"_What the hell happened Nathan? Why are you still here!" she asked more hurt than angry._

"_I swear Haley it was an accident, you now I'd.."_

_Before he could get another word out, the bathroom door opened and Tracy walked out in her same clothes from the night before, sans shirt. "You seen a shirt lying around?" she asked, looking directly at Nathan while fixing her bra straps._

_Shaking her head, Haley started to back away from Nathan completely as the tears welled back up in her eyes._

"_Haley, don't leave you know this isn't me Haley! Dammit just talk to me"_

"_No, you don't talk to me like that. Stay the hell away from me Nathan" He couldn't stop her from running to her car and leaving just as quickly as she'd gotten there._

_Nine voicemails, twenty text messages, seventeen missed phone calls, and four hours and thirty-six minutes later, Nathan sat fiddling with his phone while Lucas returned the rental car to the airport. They'd stuck around for as long as they could before they had to leave the small town and head back to the airport for their late night flight. No one had heard from Haley, and the only bright spot in the entire situation was that Nathan was able to explain to Brooke everything that happened and had Brandon there as well to back up his story and vouch for him. She knew the whole story knowing that Haley would come to her friends for comfort sooner or later, she promised to tell her everything._

_The only problem now was that Haley hadn't been home since she'd ran out that morning and she'd only responded to Brooke and Peyton's text with a simple "I'm fine" text message before shutting her phone off. _

_Minutes later, Nathan and Lucas sat across from one another on the shuttle to their terminal in silence. The entire time Lucas was texting on his phone, Nathan watched jealously, wishing he could talk to Haley even if only for a minute._

"_Brooke say anything about Haley?"_

_Lucas lost track with the number of times his younger brother had asked him that question and did his best to not get annoyed with him. "Not a word"_

_He was back to pouting when it was time to get off. Walking through the automatic doors, Lucas stopped Nathan and held out the ticket he'd been holding for his brother. _

"_Listen and admit you're an idiot and apologize for the next hour and a half. I'll see you at the gate"_

_Nathan was completely confused until Lucas gestured behind him and when he turned around he was shocked to see Haley standing no more than twenty feet away from him. _

_His mind was solely focused on the woman that stood so close, yet still so far from him. He didn't have time to question if he should give her space or let her take the lead, instead he was before her in just seconds, pulling her body tightly to his._

"_I was so worried about you. I don't ever want to be that scared again Hales. I know you're pissed and hurt and upset, but just please tell me that you believe me when I say nothing happened with her. You have to know I would never do anything remotely close to hurting you like that"_

_It worried Nathan that she hadn't hugged him back, but instead held onto his arms. When she nodded against him, his hold relaxed a little and when she barely whispered "I trust you" he let out the breath he had been holding. _

_Haley pulled out of his grasp and took his hand in hers, leading them over to some chairs that were by the door he'd just come in. There weren't too many people roaming around, most of them heading directly to their gates._

"_You're the first guy that's ever made me feel special and loved Nathan" she started slowly._

"_I know that" he interrupted, making sure she knew where he stood, "and I want to be the only guy that can do that."_

"_I know, so do I. I want that so bad too. It's just that when any girl, especially a girl like Tracy that I've seen guys, good guys get caught up in and jump over hurdles to be with her even for a day- when I see that kind of girl wanting you and just hear about her wanting you, it honestly makes me feel inadequate and like it's all just a joke and I could never be with someone like you."_

"_Hales, I would never.."_

"_It's not about you Nathan. It's not you that worried me really, it's her. I've seen her manipulate some of the best guys I know. Guys with standards and, and morals and even guys with girlfriends and fiancés and she just changes them in an instant and I refuse to let anyone take you from me Nathan. I couldn't handle it" The tears that were evident in her voice the second she'd started to speak were now flowing freely down her face._

_Taking a hold of her hands in one of his he brought the other up to lift her chin so that they were at eye level with one another and leaned in to kiss her lips softly._

"_Haley James, soon enough Scott, there is NO one in this world that could take me away from you. I don't care who it is, what they look like, what they think they're selling, it'll always be you and no one else. I love you so much baby, and I screwed up big time, but I promise I'll do anything to make sure you never doubt that you'll always have me"_

_It was her that leaned captured his lips in a searing, yet gentle kiss, moving herself as close to him as possible. Moving his hands from her lap, Nathan framed her face brushing the remnants of tears that were still there before entangling his fingers in her honey blonde hair._

_She laughed a pulled back from his lips when he'd hit a tangle in her hair, causing pain. "Sorry, it's kind of a mess in there" she wiped at his mouth, removing the clear lip gloss that'd transferred to his lips. "I was in a rush to get here and didn't bother to make myself presentable. Brooke told me everything and I just wanted to get here before you took off"_

_His hands smoothed her hair back, and he twirled a piece of hair in his hands then kissed at her head. "You're beautiful. Always beautiful." He looked down, taking in her sweat pants, tank top and small pink matching jacket. _

_She would have normally been embarrassed with the way he was staring at her body, but the way he was looking at her made her feel just as beautiful as he'd said she was. "How much longer till you need to head to security?" Haley said breaking the silence._

_Nathan snapped out of his trance and looked to the black watch he wore on his wrist. He didn't answer her right away, instead he looked outside for a few moments while doing a few calculations in his head. "Umm, well I still have at least an hour before I really need to make my way to security, but I think I should head there now"_

_Her face was full of confusion at his answer "what do you mean?" sure she didn't want to seem clingy, but she knew he'd understand her wanting to stay as long as possible to be with him while she could._

"_Trust me Hales, I want to stay here with you as long as possible" he said seeing her confusion and sensing the fear it might have put in her mind. "But baby, you have to get on the road, like now. You have about six hours ahead of you and it's through the mountains and the damn deer will be out, I just want you to be back home and not driving this late. It's already getting dark"_

_He hadn't thought of that, and by the look on her face, Haley hadn't thought about that either. She was nearly terrified of deer and her biggest fear was hitting one while driving at night. Her hold on his hands tightened knowing she'd be out of the airport and away from him in the next few minutes and tears welled up in her eyes._

_Nathan stood up and walked out automatic doors, having her lead the way towards her car parked in the lot across the walkway. She held onto his waste tightly with her other hand intertwined with his. The walk wasn't long at all and when she leaned into her car, she pulled him with her burying her face in his neck, and sobbing._

_Nathan held her tightly completely understanding the emotions she was feeling. This was their first big… whatever it was, and although everything was fixed, understood and sorted out, they had no time to really bask in the achievement of it all. _

_He wanted to hold on to her forever. _

_Pushing back from Nathan with a quick thought, Haley held up one finger then unlocked her door before turning it on and rolling the windows down. "five more minutes" he barely heard the whisper that came from her lips before she clung to him once again and started to sway, pulling him along with her. _

_Before he could question her actions, music started to flow from the car with a strong piano leading the tune. He squeezed her tightly to him, running his hands up and down the length of her back, swaying with her to what she deemed their song._

_This years love had better last_

_Heaven knows it's high time_

_I've been waiting on my own too long_

_But when you hole me like you do_

_It feels so right_

_I start to forget_

_How my heart gets torn_

_When that hurt gets thrown_

_Feeling like you can't go on_

_This years love had better last_

_This years love had better last_

_When the song was over, Haley had intentions to lock her car up, but Nathan halted her actions by pulling her closer to his body and meeting her lips in a deep, open mouth kiss. Nathan angled her head sideways, slanting his mouth over hers. He moaned when her hands ended up scratching at his scalp and lovingly pulling the short hairs on his head. _

_They took seconds for air before continuing their attack on one another's mouths. When Nathan finally pulled back, he simply gathered her in his arms, squeezing her tight and planting one last kiss on her neck, then her hair. _

"_I'm not going to let you watch me leave you Hales.. I do that enough. You're gonna get in your car, head home, and I'm going to call you as soon as I land. You get on the road and I'll call Brooke and Peyton to let them know you're on the way. I want you to be careful baby. I couldn't survive if anything happened to you. I love you so much baby"_

_She didn't want to listen to him, but when he didn't let her get a word in, she knew better than to argue with him. "I love you too Nathan. Always and forever right"_

"_Always and forever" he agreed._

* * *

The kids were being put in bed, the house had been straightened up as much as she felt like doing, and now was time to bring up the elephant in the room.

It was obvious that Nathan had steered clear of his wife the entire evening that she'd been home with their children. He'd been so hands on with them that he'd barely looked at her and they surely hadn't spoken about their respectful days. He'd just left out of Jay's room after reading to him and Maddie, and she was surprised when instead of handing the baby over to be nursed he kept Maddie in his arms and headed into the living room.

"Hey babe, don't you think it's about time Toots goes to bed" It was well pass eight and although it was the start of summer break, the staying up late rules didn't apply to the nearly seven month old baby.

"Well I really need to feed her, then I'm going to put her down, so hand that little cutie over" she talked to him in a chipper voice, mostly meant for Maddie. She scooped her out of his arms even while he protested before taking her to into their bedroom.

It was nearly thirty minutes later when Nathan decided to finally go to his room. When he saw Haley facing his side of the bed, he figured she'd fallen asleep while feeding his daughter but was wrong. When he finally came into her view, her eyes locked on his and he was able to read the worry in her eyes.

"You want me to put her down" he questioned gesturing to the sleeping baby that lay still attached to her breast.

She shook her head slowly before moving her daughter and fixing her tank top. She sat up leaning back against the headboard and pillows laying the dark headed baby on her chest, stroking her back lovingly. She cherished everything about her little girl and knew Nathan felt the same way.

"Talk to me Nathan" she didn't look up as she spoke the soft words to him, and she didn't want to be emotional about whatever would be coming out of his mouth, but she couldn't help get chocked up. "I don't care what it is Nathan, just talk to me."

"Hales, everything's fine, it's just been a long few days"

"Come here" she waited till he was in the same position as her on the bed, and transferred the small child onto his chest before reaching for her phone. She scooted away from them before snapping a picture of them with her phone.

"I um.. when we got on facebook, you know how you set up the emails to come to my email since you get so many from work," he continued without waiting for her to answer. "for the past few days, I've been getting non-stop emails from someone and they just won't quit. I've told them so many times I'm happily married with a family and that I have no interest in them."

Haley sat her phone down, and scooted closer to Nathan on the bed, leaning back on her knees resting her hands on her thighs. "Do you remember what you said to me right after we said I do on our wedding day? The same thing you said to me when Jay was born, and you wrote it in the card you sent with the flowers to the hospital when this one was here."

He nodded his head and reached out to take her hand in his. "Everything you are, is exactly what I want in my life"

"I feel the same way and you've given me every reason to always believe you since the first time you spoke those words to me. We've been through so much together that the things that would normally cause me to retreat back into that self-conscious person I used to be doesn't have that effect on me anymore. The army doesn't scare me anymore, sickness doesn't scare me, and other people trying to destroy our marriage doesn't scare me…. Tracy doesn't scare me"

She spoke the last part quietly. Her husband didn't utter a word, but his body language spoke extremely loud. His wide eyes shared how shocked he was to hear the name slip from her lips and his tense frame that now had their little girl squirming against his chest proved to Haley that he was afraid of her response.

"I'm not that girl anymore Nathan, so calm down. You're getting Toots all worked up over nothing." Still reading the look in his eyes of how, she decided to spill. "Lucas called me after he left and told me how strange you were acting and that he was kinda worried, so while you were bathing the kids I went to tidy up and saw the lap top on and your email was still open. I read all the emails from her and how she's been harassing you and all your replies."

"You're so calm about this Hales. I swear I wasn't trying to lie to you about this"

"And I believe you. In fact I didn't think you were trying to lie or cover it up. I could sense something was bothering you and seeing all those emails from her just made me feel bad for her and frankly want to kick her ass" she laughed saying the last part, knowing she'd get a smile out of him.

She leaned forward and ran her hand softly over Maddie's hair, before touching his hair the same way. "Every time you give me one of these, a beautiful baby, you show me how much you love me and only me. You prove to me that I'm yours and that you're only mine. When you kiss me I believe that you're mine and when we make love to each other, I can feel that you belong to me. We will definitely get to the bottom of what she's up to, but nothing that she says will make me question that you're _my_ husband. I'm not that young girl anymore Nathan, I'm all grown up and we're not going to run and hide from this, we're going to handle this like adults because we have no idea what she's planning and we have our family to protect."

Nathan simply starred at her in awe before leaning in and kissing her. "I love you"

"Oh yea" she asked moving away from him and smiling. "Why don't you put that baby in her room and show me just how much you love me Nathan Scott" she pulled the eleastic out of her hair, letting her shoulder length hair out knowing how much her husband hated it up when they made love.

"Can you get naked in say fifteen seconds?" he said scooting off the bed.

Haley rolled her eyes, knowing good and well her husband would never put their daughter, sleeping or awake, down in just fifteen seconds. He needed at least a couple of minutes with the baby before laying her down. "You have two minutes Scott"

"Yes ma'am"

She smiled at his retreating form as he talked softly to their daughter. She was proud of herself for being so strong and talking with Nathan about this. In all honesty, she still didn't trust Tracy and knew that there was a possibility that a lot of bad could come out of the entire situation.

She hoped it wouldn't.

* * *

**AN: okay, sorry this was so short. The ending of this chapter i envisioned didnt come through at all but it's ok. The major things I wanted to happen with this story without them getting to crazy has already went down. This wasn't a story I wrote to be filled with drama but to actually be a mirror image of a relationship I had and what I hoped the future to be- Now none of it happened lol but this was fun to write. This story, my baby **** will be finished pretty soon. I'm guessing/estimating in the next 3 chapters or so. Thank you for all the support that you've given me on this story and this road I've taken Naley down and for excepting the differences I brought out in this couple! Don't worry, I have a story up my sleeve I'm going to start plotting for and it might just be a short one- maybe 10 chapters, but it'll keep Naley alive! Thanks all and review!**

**Jennifer!**


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